Dechert Advises Shareholders of Smartlab on Strategic Partnership

Dechert advised the shareholders of Smartlab – Thüga Aktiengesellschaft, energie schwaben GmbH, BEB Berliner Elektromobilitäts-Beteiligung GmbH, Stadtwerke Osnabrück Aktiengesellschaft, and STAWAG – Stadt- und Städteregionswerke Aachen AG – on the sale of a majority stake in smartlab Innovationsgesellschaft mbH (Smartlab) to DKV Mobility. The strategic partnership is aimed at enhancing Smartlab’s technology solutions and expanding its market reach. The partnership will further solidify DKV Mobility’s position as a leading European B2B platform for on-the-road payment solutions.

The completion of the transaction is expected to take place in the first quarter of 2025, subject to the relevant antitrust approvals.

Smartlab operates one of the largest public charging networks in Germany and has more than 26,800 connected charging points. The company operates the ladenetz.de and ladebusiness brands, featuring an extensive network of partnerships with over 275 municipal energy suppliers and more than 190 traders from diverse industries. Smartlab also operates the internationally oriented roaming platform e-clearing.net, a market leader in Germany and in Europe.

The Munich based Dechert team that advised on this transaction was led by corporate partner Giovanni Russo and included corporate partner Carina Klaes-Staudt, counsel Tobias Hugo, and associates Adriana Worms and Georg Littmann. The team also included Brussels-based antitrust partner Clemens Graf York von Wartenburg, along with associates Isabella Egetenmeir and Thirith von Döhren.

About Dechert

Dechert is a global law firm that advises asset managers, financial institutions and corporations on issues critical to managing their business and their capital – from high-stakes litigation to complex transactions and regulatory matters. We answer questions that seem unsolvable, develop deal structures that are new to the market and protect clients' rights in extreme situations. Our nearly 1,000 lawyers across 19 offices globally focus on the financial services, private equity, private credit, real estate, life sciences and technology sectors.