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Proterra To Go Public Via SPAC ArcLight Clean Transition Corp

Catching up with the SPAC frenzy in the electric vehicles industry, North American electric bus maker Proterra has become the latest company to agree to go public through a special purpose acquisition company called ArcLight Clean Transition Corp. The agreement comes just when another electric car maker, Lucid Motors had been in talks with SPAC Churchill Capital IV to go public.

Details Of The Merger

The transaction values Proterra at an enterprise value of $1.6 billion. It is expected to raise around $648 million in cash while an additional $415 million private investment in public equity (PIPE) backed by Daimler Trucks, Franklin Templeton, Fidelity Management, and funds managed by BlackRock is also included in the merger.

Ownership Structure

Post the merger, ArcLight shareholders will own 11.6% of Proterra while the PIPE shareholders will have 17.3% of ownership in Proterra. Shareholders of Proterra have agreed to convert 100% of their shares into the new company and will own more than 60% of the new entity once the deal is closed.

Jack Allen, Chairman and CEO of Proterra, will continue to play his role as the CEO while Jake Erhard, president of ArcLight, will join Proterra’s board of directors.

About Proterra

Proterra was founded in 2004 in Golden, Colorado by a mechanical engineer, Dale Hill. The electric bus leader has around 500 transit buses catering to 120 customers in the US and Canada who have collectively used more than 14 million miles of service. Customers of Proterra include Thomas Built Bus, Van Hool, BusTech, and Optimal-EV. Proterra’s vehicles work on batteries, reducing dependency on fuels.

Moreover, the company operates three complementary businesses: Proterra Powered that offers batteries and electrification, Proterra Transit that offers electric transit bus service, and Proterra Energy that offers a turn-key charging management system. The company captures more than 50% of the market share for electric transit buses in North America.

According to CEO Jack Allen, the deal will not only allow Proterra to achieve its goal of advancing EV technology to deliver the world’s best performing commercial vehicles, but it would also build a partnership with ArcLight that shares a similar focus on sustainability and renewable energy.

ArcLight Share Price

Post the announcement of the deal, shares of ArcLight Clean Transition jumped 56% to $19.07. Proterra was previously rumored to merge with another SPAC, Qell Acquisition Corp. As the merger with ArcLight was disclosed, shares of Qell Acquisition fell 8% to $11.37. Once the deal is concluded, shares of Proterra will be listed on the Nasdaq under the ticker “PRTA”.

 

The transaction comes three months after Proterra raised $200 million from an investment group backed by Cowen Sustainable Advisors, Soros Fund Management, Generation Investment Management, and Broadscale Group.

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