No Bull: Durham, N.C. is the new HQ for EV charging’s newest player.
Ionna, the new EV charging company started by seven automakers, just made things real. It now has a new headquarters, a new management team, and the most aggressive roadmap in the business.
After seven automakers announced their new EV charging company, Ionna, had launched in February, the company’s first action was odd. It entered near-complete radio silence.
Aside from scores of help-wanted ads on websites, Ionna went dark. No press releases. No new charging station launches. Nothing.
Yesterday, though, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper entered the picture and announced he had persuaded Ionna to locate its company in Durham County in the Tar Heel State.
Compared to multi-billion dollar manufacturing announcements, Ionna’s new HQ will be relatively small: a $10 million investment with about 200 jobs. But those jobs will pay up to $128,000 annually and include Ionna’s C-suite - several of whom (its CFO, COO and CPO) were also announced.
It’s now playing in an industry where top competitors like EVGo and Electrify America have routinely seen high double-digit or triple-digit growth.
Ionna, in its announcement, said:
“With a new headquarters, IONNA can now accelerate its 2024 launch plans. Durham, located in the bustling heart of the Research Triangle, with its thriving research ecosystem and leading universities, stands as the ideal backdrop for IONNA’s operations.”
But those launch plans come with an ambitious punch list: the company needs to firm up supply chains, continue hiring, and work on permitting and construction of EV charging sites throughout the U.S.
Considering that finding real estate for charging stations, obtaining permits, and procuring a supply of equipment like transformers and switchgear - which the industry has experienced delays of up to two years to obtain - getting its first sites up and running in just seven months won’t be easy.
In addition, Ionna needs to staff up. Right now, its “help wanted” ads are appearing all over the web for positions including software engineers, project designers, retail product staff, facilities technicians, and marketing staff, among others. That’s a lot of new employees to on board - putting it in the unenviable position of building a plane while it’s in the air.
The seven automakers behind Ionna - BMW, GM, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Mercedes-Benz, and Stellantis - can help by providing real estate necessary to locate charging. All have dealer networks that are already hosting some public EV charging stations and are expected to install a good number of the 30,000 Ionna will install.
Ionna’s new executive team is also experienced. Its new CFO, Derek Rush, previously held that title at bp Pulse - the EV charging arm of oil company BP; Richard Stamtti, it’s new chief product officer, comes to Ionna from Stellantis Energy where he was a senior VP; and Shankar Muthukumar will serve as COO. Previously he worked as general manager of the e-mobility unit at Mortenson’s.
Given the task, they’ll need that experience - and more - to meet their 2024 launch goals.