La Caisse and the Government of Québec participate in AddEnergie expansion

MONTRÉAL, Jan. 24, 2019 /CNW Telbec/ - La Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (la Caisse) announced, alongside the Government of Québec, an investment in AddEnergie, a North American leader in electric vehicle charging solutions.

This new transaction will help AddEnergie to double the production capacity at its Shawinigan plant and develop the next generation of products and solutions, particularly charging stations, network management software and smart grid software. This backing will enable AddEnergie to pursue growth, namely in the U.S. market, which it entered in 2018. These actions will lead to the creation of 130 additional jobs within the company.

"We appreciate the trust la Caisse and the Government of Québec are placing in us by supporting our growth and efforts to expand into the U.S. market," said Louis Tremblay, President and Chief Executive Officer, AddEnergie. "Last spring, we worked with Vermont's Green Mountain Power (GMP), one of the U.S.'s most innovative electricity providers, to install residential charging infrastructure that is connected and energy managed to support the evolution of GMP's smart electrical grid. We plan to announce several more major collaborations and the support of our partners is timely in terms of delivering the phenomenal growth that our company has experienced year after year."

The investment announced today is subsequent to an initial joint investment by la Caisse and the Government of Québec in the Québec-based company in 2016. That investment allowed AddEnergie to meet its growth and technology deployment objectives across Canada over the last two years.

"Since our initial investment, CDPQ has supported AddEnergie in its ambitious plans for growth in new markets. As the Canadian leader in its industry, AddEnergie is well positioned to carve out a leading position in the U.S.," said Mathieu Gauvin, Senior Vice-President, Québec at CDPQ. "In addition to the financial support announced today, CDPQ will also support AddEnergie by providing access to its firmly established network of experts and global partners."

"AddEnergie has enjoyed sustained growth since its beginning, and proves once again that Québec has the know-how and resources necessary to secure a desirable position in the North American market for smart charging solutions for electric vehicles. It is with great pride that the Government of Québec supports this dynamic company, which also contributes to meeting our greenhouse gas reduction objectives," added Pierre Fitzgibbon, Minister of Economy and Innovation and Minister Responsible for the Lanaudière Region.

Today, AddEnergie manages over 13,000 public and private charging stations, and continues to operate its FLO charging network across North America. The company expects to have more than 100,000 stations in service within the next three years.

AddEnergie has enjoyed tremendous growth in recent years. It currently employs more than 150 people in 7 offices across North America, including business presences recently established in California and New York, including offices that were recently opened in San Francisco and New York. AddEnergie is positioned as a key North American player in the innovative electric vehicle charging industry. Recently, its leadership was honoured with the 2017 North American Electric Vehicle Charging Competitive Strategy Innovation and Leadership Award from market analysis and consulting firm, Frost & Sullivan.

ABOUT ADDENERGIE
AddEnergie is a North American leader in electric vehicle (EV) charging solutions. Founded in 2009, the company manufactures charging stations and develops network management software for all markets (residential, commercial, public). AddEnergie owns and operates FLO, Canada's largest EV charging network, and supplies charging infrastructure and network operation services to third party networks such as the Electric Circuit (Québec) and eCharge Network (New Brunswick). AddEnergie's headquarters and network operations centre are based in Quebec City, and all products are assembled at its factory in Shawinigan (Québec). The company also has regional offices in Montreal (Québec), Mississauga (Ontario), Vancouver (British Columbia), San Francisco (California) and New York (New York).  For more information, visit addenergietechnologies.com.

ABOUT CAISSE DE DÉPÔT ET PLACEMENT DU QUÉBEC
Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) is a long-term institutional investor that manages funds primarily for public and parapublic pension and insurance plans. As at June 30, 2018, it held CAD308.3 billion in net assets. As one of Canada's leading institutional fund managers, CDPQ invests globally in major financial markets, private equity, infrastructure, real estate and private debt. For more information, visit cdpq.com, follow us on Twitter @LaCDPQ or consult our Facebook or LinkedIn pages.

SOURCE Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec