- Electric vehicles expected to account for over half of global passenger car sales by 2040
- Growth in electric vehicles expected to drive oil demand down by 13.7 million barrels per day
- Proposed manufacturing facility comprises 1.3 million square feet, creation of 55 jobs at startup with up to 863 jobs created by 2026
Net Element (NASDAQ: NETE), a global technology group that operates electronic payment services, is currently in the planning stages to open a new electric vehicle (“EV”) manufacturing facility in conjunction with privately-owned Mullen Technologies (“Mullen”) via a proposed merger. With demand for electric vehicles growing globally, oil demand is expected to plummet by 13.7 million barrels a day, according to recent research by Bloomberg (http://ibn.fm/LBVZx), positioning the new company favorably as a leader in the electric vehicle industry both in the U.S. and abroad.
According to the report, electric vehicles are expected to account for over half of global passenger car sales by 2040, in addition to completely dominating the bus market. Besides the growing passenger market, electric vehicles are also projected to make headway into other areas, comprising over half of light commercial vehicle sales, 31% of the medium commercial market, and almost a fifth of the heavy truck market.
The electric vehicle industry has made substantial headway in recent years, catalyzed by the falling prices of EV batteries in addition to policy support through fuel economy regulations and China’s new energy vehicle mandate. Showcasing its market dominance, China is expected to account for almost half (48%) of all passenger car sales in 2025.
Pending definitive agreement, fairness valuation, and stockholder and board approval, the reverse merger between NETE and Mullen will allow Mullen to take control of NETE and bypass the lengthy process of going public. Anticipated to occur in the third quarter, the merger is expected to give Mullen stakeholders a majority of the stock in the newly formed public company.
“We believe the timing of this merger is ideal for Mullen Technologies,” said Mullen CEO David Michery (http://ibn.fm/eMbwh). “It comes on the preparation of our launch of the Dragonfly K50, which will be available in (the second quarter) of 2021 and through our retail network in California and Arizona.”
Pending requisite approvals, the new company has plans to open an electric sports car manufacturing facility in West Plains, Missouri. The proposed 1.3 million square feet of assembly and manufacturing space is expected to create 55 jobs at startup with up to 863 jobs created by 2026. An additional 3,000 jobs are projected to be created for the research and development of lithium-ion batteries through Mullen’s subsidiary company, Mullen Energy.
Besides Mullen Energy, the company has several other subsidiaries that include a series of pre-owned auto dealerships in California and Arizona that operate under the Mullen Auto Sales banner, a digital auto marketplace called CarHub, and a financing company called Mullen Finance Corp. that offers vehicle leases and loans. Unrelated to the automotive business is another Mullen subsidiary called Smart 8 Energy that sources ventilators, COVID-19 antibody test kits, virus test kits and personal protective equipment.
Ranked on Deloitte’s Technology Fast 500(TM) list of North America’s 500 fastest growing technology, media, telecommunications, life sciences and energy tech companies in both 2017 and 2018, NETE credits its progression to organic growth in its North America Transactions Segment. Crediting most of its success to its Unified Payments brand, NETE focuses on value-added payment acceptance solutions for small to medium enterprises in the United States.
For more information, visit the company’s website at www.NetElement.com.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to NETE are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/NETE
