The Captain
3 Likes
So, it appears they went public two years ago at $10/share and it was trading at $0.70 before the buyout announcement. That’s some value destruction.
Do you know what Shell plans to spend its money doing with the company?
DB2
No. I just saw the news and though it was worth posting. Maybe they’ll put chargers in Shell gas stations. There will be ICE cars on the road for a long time.
So, it appears they went public two years ago at $10/share and it was trading at $0.70 before the buyout announcement. That’s some value destruction.
As I mention earlier, I thought about investing in EV charging but was quickly dissuaded. I lost $970.48 on Volta. 
My second covered call was assigned at $9 on Nov 19, 2021 and that was the end of it.
The Captain
1 Like
I’d guess they want to use it for greenwashing.
Does Shell own any of those stations?
2 Likes
Shell spent approximately 3.8 one hundredth of a percent of its annual sales on Volta. A few executives probably could have written a check to cover it. This is quite a disingenuous business/climate action headline.
What Volta does: EV charging stations with online media screens. Like gas pumps have had for 10 years. 3100 stalls so far, Shell paid 12x quarterly revenue, most of which was from media (advertising) in the stalls. So, Shell wants to get paid for its help “decarbonizing”. Classic.
Cmon Shell, just pony up and get Tesla SCs installed in some of your high traffic locations. Yah, right.
2 Likes
And those screens are VERY bright! I’ve charged at Volta places a few times and those screens are almost blinding.
I think WAWA is the leader at the moment.
Probably not but since they own the trademark they probably have some control over the gas stations like any other franchise.
The Captain
1 Like
I would love the irony if the following happened - diesel generators in semi-remote locations, hidden behind a screen, to act as recharging stations.
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I did some brief googsearch and it seems that unlike most of the oil majors, Shell does own many of its branded filling stations.
We’ve all, of course, seen that meme. Many times. It’s funny the first time, worth a chuckle the second time, a brief smile the third time, but thereafter becomes tiresome (so I won’t include a pic here, though I was tempted). But it isn’t a real thing except in some very extreme circumstances. Regular generators are terribly inefficient and would completely negate, and more, all EV efficiency advantages. Stand-alone diesel generators are a little bit more efficient, but still would eliminate all EV efficiencies. Only large power plants, even coal ones, result in [much] higher efficiency from EVs [than from ICE vehicles].
It does sound ridiculous. But in actuality might not be that bad of an idea for a remote location. If you are going to drive 500 or 1000 miles on a vacation and there is one nice state or natl park area you want to visit that otherwise has little or no recharging infrastructure just getting 50 or 100 miles of charge at the destination could tip an EV owner to use their EV for the entire trip rather than an ICE car.
It also doesn’t mean that everyone at that location would be using the diesel generator…just those beyond, perhaps the one or two grid connected L2 chargers. So only when there were 3 or more people charging would it be needed.
Of course, there are other solutions, such as solar panels with battery storage and/or batteries trickle charged over night.
Mike
1 Like
Portable chargers have been sold for years. Some are towed behind your car. Others are designed for roadside assistance companies. For example:
https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a32069151/blink-roadside-mobile-charger/
DB2
Shares of ChargePoint and other EV charging companies sank following news of rival Volta’s planned acquisition
https://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2023/01/19/chargepoint-shares-sink-after-volta-news.html?utm_source=sy&utm_medium=nsyp&utm_campaign=yh
The relatively low price Shell plc plans to pay for Volta Inc. appears to have drained investor’s enthusiasm for its rivals, including ChargePoint Holding…
Neither Volta, ChargePoint, EVgo nor Blink are profitable, so they worth can’t be evaluated as a function of their earnings.
DB2
And I don’t think they ever will be. Or if they are, they won’t make much money. It is a low margin business with low barriers to entry.
In theory, once all the “good spots” are taken, there is suddenly a high barrier to entry. But I agree thst it will likely never be a very good business.
Gas stations make hardly any money selling gas! They make it on donuts, soft drinks and beer. How many EV charging stations are convenience stores?
Given how much longer it takes to charge an EV, I would expect charging stations to include sit down restaurants, hair salons, casinos, anything that would burn up enough of the customer’s time to keep them occupied while the car charges.
Steve
2 Likes
IMO, mostly none, so far. But there are a few like the Harris Ranch Superchargers that have 18 chargers (plus some EA CCS as well) that have a couple of restaurants and a gift shop that do a lots of business…might be difficult to sort out how much is from the EV crowd exactly.
Yeah it couldn’t be much.
Oh wait, they are adding ~80 new Tesla Superchargers.
Mike
1 Like
Nearly every Tesla SC is near (within feet, or outdoor-mall walking distance) to convenience stores or fast-food restaurants or general stores. (I’ve been at 12 SCs on the east coast so far). The nicer ones were in a large gas station/convenience store setup like Sheetz (Morgantown WV), near a Red Crab & other rests (Harrisburg PA), etc. The others were outside shopping centers or malls.
Unlike Plugshare & ChargePoints.
Circus, that makes money for the existing businesses. What I’m saying is you need a way to make money for the charging facility. The gas station sells not just the gas, but also the food. That is not the case here.
No but here is a Seeking Alpha article
The Captain