OVO has today (24 November) announced the successful acquisition of public electric vehicle (EV) charging consumer app Bonnet.
Now part of OVO’s offering, the Bonnet app grants access to over 80% of the UK’s chargepoints (27,000 chargers at 7,000 locations), allowing EV drivers to locate, use and pay for public charging without the need for additional cards or logins.
Launched in 2021 and joined by investors such as Google Ventures, Bonnet said it has doubled its coverage across Europe, operating in 12 countries and serving 150,000 drivers.
The acquisition follows the EV aggregator opening share applications within the company in March of this year.
“Our driver community has always been at the heart of every move we’ve made – from product updates to our strategic direction – and we know partnering with OVO is going to unlock new opportunities, such as new features and integrations to people’s homes,” said Patrick Reich, CEO and co-founder of Bonnet.
“By being part of OVO, as one of the UK’s leading energy companies, we can now fully double-down on our ambitions for growth and seize new opportunities to help EV drivers, building into the entire driver journey – whether at home or away.”
Fellow co-founder of Bonnet, Eliot Makabu, CTO, shared Reich’s praise of the acquisition, calling OVO a “like-minded partner.”
Only this week (21 November) OVO won the DiveristEV Award at Solar Media’s Electric Vehicle Innovation and Excellence Awards (EVIEs), for its work surrounding diversity and inclusion.
“Like Bonnet, we want to revolutionise the EV charging experience and take another step forward on our Path to Zero,” said Mat Moakes, chief commercial officer at OVO.
“Using innovative technology they’re connecting EV drivers to the best charging networks available and turning every charge point into an accessible and simple charger that any driver can use. By combining Bonnet’s cutting edge app and OVO’s experience and scale we will encourage more people to adopt electric vehicles and transition to a greener lifestyle.”