PODP Pod Point Group Holdings Plc

20 February 2024

Pod Point Group Holdings plc

("Pod Point" or "the Group")

CEO Appointment & Directorate Change

Pod Point, a leading provider of electric vehicle ('EV') charging solutions in the UK, today announces the appointment of Melanie Lane as Chief Executive Officer ("CEO") with effect from 1 May 2024. She will succeed Andy Palmer, who has acted as Interim CEO since 6 July 2023 during the course of the executive search and appointment processes.

Melanie joins the Group from Shell Recharge Solutions ("Recharge"), having led the standalone unit following its acquisition by Shell in 2017 to become a prominent e-mobility solutions provider across key EU markets. Prior to her time running Recharge, Melanie led extensive and successful turnaround programmes for Shell's Aviation and Retail units, which delivered significant operational improvements, resulting in strengthened competitive positions and profitability.

Following Melanie's appointment as CEO on 1 May, Andy will step down from the executive leadership team and return to the Board as Chair Designate, before taking on the role of Non-Executive Chair post Pod Point's Annual General Meeting on 5 June. At this time, Gareth Davis will step down as Chair and remain on the Board as an Independent Non-Executive Director, whilst Interim Senior Independent Director Karen Myers will become the permanent Senior Independent Director. EDF Group, Pod Point's largest shareholder, has given its full support for these appointments.

Gareth Davis, Chair, commented:

"We are delighted to announce Melanie's appointment as CEO. With her extensive experience in the EV charging sector and the wider energy industry, she has the skills and ideas Pod Point needs to continue its journey to enable travel that doesn't cost the Earth. Melanie has a strong track record of building up successful businesses in a highly competitive space and we believe she will bring this same skillset to Pod Point as it looks to expand in the UK and abroad.

We are very thankful to Andy for his time as Interim CEO and look forward to welcoming him back to the Board as Chair Designate. His expertise in both Pod Point and the wider automotive sector will continue to be a major asset to the business in his new role."

Melanie Lane, CEO designate, commented:

"I am very pleased to be appointed CEO of Pod Point and am looking forward to taking on this new opportunity. Pod Point is a leading player in UK EV charging with a strong brand, high customer trust, extensive partnerships and fantastic people.

The business has an outstanding opportunity to build on the pillars of the recently announced Powering Up strategy with a renewed focus on home and workplace charging, driving recurring revenue through Energy Flex and growing internationally.

I look forward to working with David Wolffe, the executive team and everyone in the business to guide Pod Point through this exciting time in its evolution and growing its position as a key enabler of the energy transition."

About Melanie Lane

Melanie has led a long and successful career at Shell, having worked in various business units and developed key skills across a range of subsectors and customer bases.

Melanie's most recent position was as CEO of Shell Recharge Solutions, known as NewMotion at the time of her appointment in 2020. During her time at the company, Mel oversaw a step change growth in Recharge's customer base and top line revenues, diversified the portfolio of products and scaled operational capability and increased annual installations from 16,000 to 50,000, amassing a network 500,000 connected chargers.

Outside of EV charging, Melanie has a track record of delivering operational improvements and turning around underperforming businesses. During her time leading both the Aviation business in Europe and the Retail business in the UK, she delivered significant turnarounds and double-digit growth in profitability through new strategic direction, overhauling operations and sharpening customer focus.

Career:

2020: CEO, Shell Recharge Solutions, Europe

2016-2020: Global Director, Growth and Innovation: Aviation

2012-2016: European Director, Growth and Innovation: Aviation

2009-2012: Director, UK Retail

2008-2009: General Manager, Marketing Europe

2006-2008, Global Innovation Manager, Fuels Retail

There is no further information required to be disclosed pursuant to LR 9.6.13R.

Andy Palmer and Gareth Davis

Andy's appointment as Non-Executive Chair has the full support of Gareth, the rest of the Board and its majority shareholders. The Board is mindful of the Corporate Governance Code provision that a CEO should only exceptionally become chair, but is satisfied that Andy's appointment is appropriate and that he can be considered independent on appointment. Having served on the Board of Pod Point as Senior Independent Director since IPO, Andy agreed to act as interim CEO in July 2023, while a permanent CEO was recruited. Andy is one of the automotive industry's most experienced executives, whose previous roles include Chief Operating Officer of Nissan and CEO of Aston Martin Lagonda, and this experience is invaluable to Pod Point. 

The Board is satisfied that Gareth does not meet any of the factors in provision 10 of the UK Corporate Governance Code that would prevent him being an Independent Non-Executive Director. The company will count his tenure as Chair in assessing the period for which he has served on the Board.

Enquiries:

About Pod Point Group Holdings plc

Pod Point was founded in 2009. Driven by a belief that driving shouldn't cost the earth, Pod Point is building the infrastructure needed to enable the mass adoption of electric vehicles and to make living with an EV easy and affordable for everyone. As at 31 December 2023, the company has shipped more than 226k charge points on its network in the UK and is an official charge point supplier for major car brands.

Pod Point works with a broad range of organisations and customers to offer home and commercial charging solutions.

Pod Point is admitted to trading on the London Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "PODP."