Ford-backed battery maker Solid Power to go public via US$1.2b SPAC deal

Bengaluru

SOLID Power, an electric-vehicle battery maker backed by Ford and BMW, said on Tuesday that it would go public by merging with a blank-cheque firm in a deal that values the combined entity at around US$1.2 billion.

The company, which produces rechargeable batteries for automobiles as well as mobile power markets, will have US$600 million in cash after completing the merger with Decarbonization Plus Acquisition Corp III (DCRC).

That includes US$165 million from private investors such as Koch Strategic Platforms, Riverstone Energy, Neuberger Berman funds and Van Eck Associates.

Ford and BMW had last month participated in Solid Power's US$135 million early-stage financing round.

Shares of the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) were up 3.3 per cent pre-market.

SPACs are publicly listed shell companies that raise funds intending to merge with private companies to take them public.

A string of electric-vehicle makers including Lucid Motors, Fisker and Nikola went public through SPAC mergers or have announced plans for the same over the past year. Volkswagen-backed battery maker QuantumScape went public through a blank-cheque merger in a US$3.3 billion deal in 2020.

The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter, after which Solid Power will be listed on Nasdaq.

Stifel, Nicolaus & Co is serving as a financial adviser to Solid Power, while Citigroup Global Markets and JPMorgan Securities advised DCRC. REUTERS