SPAC Heramba completed purchase of Kiepe Electric from Knorr-Bremse (that keeps a 15% share)

Heramba announced today, 6th of February 2024, the completion of the purchase of majority control of Kiepe Electric from Knorr-Bremse, following announcement in August 2023. As a result of the transaction, Knorr-Bremse will continue to own 15% of Kiepe Electric and will remain a strategic partner, Kiepe stresses.

With the transaction, the special-purpose company Heramba will take over all business activities and all employees of Kiepe Electric GmbH, including the national companies.

For the German group Kiepe Electric, Busworld Europe 2023 has been the opportunity for the world premiere for mobile High-Power Charging (mHPC) with the K-Charger, which charges electric buses with up to 800 kW in mere minutes.

Heramba takes over Kiepe Electric

Heramba, with its business focus on clean energy and transportation, specifically looked for promising companies in the e-mobility segment, Kiepe Electric adds in a press note. In October 2023, Heramba entered into a business combination agreement with Project Energy Reimagined Acquisition Corp. (“PERAC”). Following consummation of the proposed business combination, the combined company’s securities are expected to be listed on Nasdaq Stock Market. 

Kiepe Electric, now controlled by Heramba, is a global leader in the electrification of road and rail urban transportation applications, including designing, manufacturing and implementing power electronics products, electric drives and vehicle controls hardware for rail vehicles and electric buses. There is also intelligent software for fleet management and energy management. The company’s software provides a holistic end-to-end dashboard from the charging systems to the end-vehicle. Kiepe Electric is also a specialist in vehicle charging solutions and is a leading supplier of In-Motion Charging solutions for buses and trolleybuses. In 2022, Kiepe Electric introduced its proprietary High Power Charging platform, which facilitates vehicle fast charging and energy management for battery-electric buses. 

Kiepe Electric says it “has a strong order backlog with major projects as a consortium partner for trams and light rail systems in Gothenburg, Dortmund, Cologne, and Leipzig, among others. Kiepe Electric also has active bus projects such as the double-articulated e-buses from Île-de- France Mobilités, Paris, and IMC e-buses in Milan. Heramba intends to continue the successful business processes of Kiepe Electric to ensure continuity of customer and supplier relationships, successful delivery of projects and fulfillment of contracts and contractual obligations. Kiepe Electric’s management team and employees will remain with the company”. 

Kiepe Electric – Heramba

Hans-Jörg Grundmann, Managing Director of Heramba said: “Kiepe Electric is an innovative provider of electrical solutions that is driving decarbonization of urban public transport. In addition to a strong core business and financial position, we are very impressed by the know-how and passion of Kiepe Electric employees. They are customer-centric, highly innovative, and consistently deliver world-class quality in production, modernization, and service. Our goal is to become a key enabler of the electrification of public transport networks in Europe and North America. With more than 550 employees in six countries, we believe Kiepe Electric is one of the most innovative companies in its industry and can provide excellent support to customers throughout the product lifecycle. We are happy to have such a highly qualified team”.

Alexander Ketterl, Managing Director of Kiepe Electric said: “Heramba has demonstrated strong conviction in our innovative products, commitment of our employees and partnership mindset to continue to scale and grow our business. The megatrend of e-mobility opens great market opportunities. With Heramba as a new owner of Kiepe Electric and Knorr-Bremse as a strategic partner, we will shape our product and service portfolio for the future. Based on the strong core business of electrical systems for buses and trains for public transportation, we are now expanding the sales of our innovative vehicle charging solutions for cities and regions. In the medium term, we also plan to successfully work with other customer groups with our innovative mobility solutions. We would like to thank the management and staff of Knorr- Bremse for their cooperation. In addition, we look forward to future joint projects, which we will continue to implement in partnership with Knorr-Bremse to deliver the best customer solutions. Together, we believe Kiepe Electric will be a leading player in the growth of the global e-mobility market.”