Daniel Englander

The Morning Feedstock April 22, 2008 at 7:15 AM

TH!NK Global (GTM’s #8 startup) will form a joint venture with VC firms Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and Rockport Capital to distribute the company’s electric vehicles in the U.S. The JV, to be called TH!NK North America, will begin selling its TH!NK City two seater in the U.S. by 2009, with volume sales hitting the 50,000 vehicle mark in two or three years. The Norwegian EV company made news earlier this year for partnering with GE and leading battery maker (and GTM’s #1 startup) A123 Systems on the powertrain for its new vehicle series. Under the JV arrangement, TH!NK will likely lease batteries through a monthly subscription to consumers, helping them keep the City’s cost below $25,000.

Who’s messing with whom? A few weeks ago the British Government announced they would sell their 32.5 percent stake in British Energy, a leading nuclear power company, most likely to fund the country’s nuclear modernization and expansion plans. British Energy’s central role in the $40 billion, 23 reactor plan made it a valuable acquisition target, and most every European power company announced they were interested in getting in on the action - especially EdF, the world’s largest nuclear power company. At the same time, Spanish utility Iberdrola was being shopped around and picked over as a possible acquisition target. Among the groups planning a bid for the Basque power company was EdF, together with Iberdrola shareholder ACS. While the French company delayed announcing its position on a takeover, Iberdrola chief Ignacio Galan has reportedly told the company, “put up or shut up.”

A Le Figaro article, citing unnamed sources, is now saying EdF would rather acquire British Energy than Iberdrola. In acquiring the UK power company, which has more than 10 GW of nuclear power under management, EdF would be able to solidify its hold on the British market through its EdF Energy subsidiary. While an Iberdrola acquisition would help diversify the company’s power generation assets, it already has similar power sources online through its edf energies nouvelles joint venture. Pushing EdF closer to a British Energy acquisition is the announced interest of Iberdrola in picking the UK nuclear company. Galan’s bait-and-switch just may work.

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