(Updated with details, context)
FRANKFURT/MILAN, May 3 (Reuters) – Stellantis on Tuesday announced plans to buy mobility service Share Now from German groups BMW and Mercedes-Benz, an acquisition that responds to the development strategy of “Free2move”, the activity automobile group’s car-sharing scheme.
Stellantis, which notably includes the Peugeot, Citroën, Fiat, Chrysler and Opel brands, has set itself the objective of increasing its turnover in mobility services to 2.8 billion euros with a first stage of 700 million euros in 2025.
This operation reflects the different strategies of car manufacturers who are trying to find sources of income other than the simple sale of vehicles, in particular by developing mobility services.
“This draft agreement strengthens Free2move’s position as a major player in international mobility, adding 14 major European cities to those already covered and 10,000 vehicles to the fleet of 2,500 cars currently available”, states in a press release Brigitte Courtehoux, general manager of mobility activities at Stellantis.
“We’ve been breakeven since mid-2020, we know how to be profitable in this business,” she said.
She added that Free2Move’s fleet will not become 100% Stellantis vehicles, but “little by little we will integrate more and more Stellantis cars into it”.
No financial details were provided for the transaction. The Italian daily La Repubblica reported that it amounted to around 100 million euros.
At 10:51 a.m., the Stellantis share listed in Milan rose by 2.49%.
Share Now pulled out of the North American market in 2019 due to high maintenance costs and what was later described as “the volatile state of the global mobility landscape”.
By selling this business, BMW and Mercedes-Benz want to focus on the two remaining parts of their mobility cooperation: Free Now, an app that allows booking cars, taxis, e-scooters and e-bikes, and the Charge Now charging infrastructure reservation application. (Report Christoph Steitz, Christina Amann, Giulio Piovaccari, with the contribution of Jean-Michel Bélot in Paris, edited by Kate Entringer)