[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyungsoo] Estraffic continues its sharp rise for the second consecutive day. Expectations for growth in the electric vehicle charging business appear to be influencing the stock price.
As of 9:46 AM on the 25th, Estraffic is trading at 6,010 KRW, up 16.25% from the previous day. The sharp upward trend seems to be continuing after hitting the daily price limit the day before.
Estraffic is spinning off its electric vehicle charging business division and establishing a new company called SS Charger. SK Networks and Anchor Equity Partners are participating through investments.
SS Charger will be a newly established company with a scale of 150 billion KRW through Estraffic’s sale of existing shares and issuance of new shares. SK Networks plans to secure a majority stake and position itself as a leading company in the electric vehicle charging sector.
Estraffic explained that the spin-off is intended to actively and aggressively strengthen expertise and expand the business in the electric vehicle charging sector, which has already demonstrated significant market potential.
In the new corporation, SK Networks will take the lead in marketing and management of the overall business, while Estraffic plans to enhance business competitiveness by continuously providing solutions.
SK Networks has continuously engaged in various electric vehicle-related businesses and investments across its parent and subsidiaries. SK Networks invested approximately 10 billion KRW in Everon, one of the top three domestic slow electric vehicle charger companies. SK Rent-a-Car is working on building the largest electric vehicle charging complex in Korea and aims to convert its entire fleet of about 200,000 vehicles to electric by 2030. Various collaborations with SK Networks’ existing businesses are also anticipated.
Estraffic is the largest private operator of fast charging stations providing a “total electric vehicle charging solution.” Based on its experience in transportation payment systems and infrastructure operation, it develops and supplies electric vehicle chargers based on the differentiated SS Charger Charging Infrastructure Management System (CSMS). SS Charger launched Korea’s first subscription-based electric vehicle charging product, “Lucky Pass,” which has received favorable reviews from actual electric vehicle users.
Estraffic CEO Moon Chan-jong stated, “Even after the spin-off of the electric vehicle charging business, Estraffic’s intrinsic corporate value remains unchanged. Through cooperation with SK Networks and Anchor Equity Partners, we will secure market leadership through aggressive investment and seize the opportunity to become a global leader in the electric vehicle charging market.”
He added, “Funds secured through the sale of existing shares are being considered for new investments in areas related to the electric vehicle charging business ecosystem.”
Estraffic plans to hold a shareholders’ meeting in early October to approve the spin-off and complete the establishment of the new corporation by November.
The number of public chargers worldwide, as compiled by the IEA, is approximately 1.75 million. Considering that the global electric vehicle count grew at an average annual rate of 87% over the past decade, the number of chargers has shown a similarly high growth rate. Electricity used for electric vehicle charging reached about 32 TWh in 2021. From 2015 to 2021, the annual growth rate of electricity demand was about 52%. The number of chargers also increased at an annual rate of about 46%, showing similar growth levels in both charger count and electricity usage.
Going forward, the number of chargers worldwide is expected to increase from about 1.8 million in 2021 to between 26 million and 31 million by 2030. This represents a high annual growth rate of 35?37%. Shinhan Financial Investment analyzed that electricity charged through public charging stations in 2030 will reach approximately 128?198 TWh. Assuming an average charging fee of 30 cents per kWh, the global charging market size is estimated to be between 38 billion USD (about 51 trillion KRW) and 59 billion USD (79 trillion KRW).
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