Groupe Renault launches charging solutions for companies

Groupe Renault is launching Elexent, a new subsidiary entirely dedicated to helping professionals find charging solutions for their fleets of electric or rechargeable hybrid vehicles.

Elexent has the ambition to facilitate all infrastructure projects for recharging fleets of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles. From the design to the operation of the load networks, Elexent offers tailor-made and turnkey solutions that cover all the needs of professionals.

Nicolas Schottey, Chief Executive of Elexent, said: “Our purpose is to help companies establish or expand their electric vehicle fleets by providing ready-to-use charging solutions. We help our clients create optimised energy strategies by designing the best charging infrastructure to meet their needs, supervising installation and implementation, and overseeing operations and maintenance. Our goal is to make people's their lives easier. Whether we help with just one stage of the process or oversee the whole thing from start to finish, our clients will be dealing with a single intermediary: Elexent.”

Groupe Renault says that it has created Elexent to continue the democratisation of EVs and to accelerate the energy transition. After reducing costs and increasing range for electric vehicles, the next major obstacle was charging. This hurdle had largely been overcome for individuals through the introduction of home charging equipment. But for company fleets, which are key to the large-scale deployment of electric vehicles, something was still missing.

“Charging is a complex issue, one that requires precise knowledge of electric grids, rules and regulations, as well as the seamless cooperation between the different players involved. Elexent aims to facilitate bringing electric mobility to fleets of professional vehicles,” added Schottey.

The new company will service any business that intend to install more than two charging stations on a single site. It will also work with companies that want to offer a charging solution to their customers or residents, such as parking lots, shopping malls, hotels and real-estate operators.

Groupe Renault has an in-depth knowledge of how vehicles work in general and batteries in particular, and also of how professional clients use their vehicles. Elexent's partners, such as Schneider Electric and Alfen for charging stations, Snef for installation, and Izivia for service, bring their own specialty, their knowledge of electric networks, connectivity, installation and regulations. These partners have already set up more than 20,000 stations. As for Groupe Renault, it manages no fewer than 4000 charging stations on its own industrial and commercial sites and has experience setting up complete electric ecosystems, such as the “smart island” of Porto Santo.

Elexent's long-term goal is to create a network of offices across Europe, so it can be as close to the clients as possible and work with local businesses. The advantage of this is that the local teams already speak the country's language and have extensive knowledge of the local market and regulations. The office in France is already up and running; it was created in partnership with a French company well-known in the charging infrastructure sector, Solstyce. Elexent intends to open four more offices before the end of the year in Germany, the United Kingdom and Benelux, where Groupe Renault is already present and the electric vehicle market is well-established. But we are also working on pan-European projects.

Element is currently working with a vehicle rental franchise to install EV charging stations at all their agencies in France as also an electric component distributor looking to grow its EV fleet. The company is also working with Renault Trucks and Volvo Trucks, helping them set up infrastructure to coincide with the launch of their EVs.