Press release
Héricourt, January 4th 2021
GAUSSIN creates dedicated subsidiary GAUSSIN NORTH AMERICA Inc. to lead its commercial deployment across the region
This strategically structured corporate entity will facilitate the commercialization of GAUSSIN’s range of Battery Electric (BEV) and Fuel Cell Electric (FCEV) vehicles following the strategic partnerships with Magna, Plug Power and Robotic Research.
GAUSSIN (EURONEXT GROWTH - FR0010342329),
a pioneer in clean and intelligent freight transportation, announces its entry to the North American market through the creation of GAUSSIN NORTH AMERICA, a wholly-owned subsidiary based in New York. Christophe Gaussin is the CEO of the new entity that will lead GAUSSIN's activities in North America.
A series of strategic partnerships in North America
The creation of GAUSSIN NORTH AMERICA follows a series of strategic partnerships and commercial agreements in recent months with North American companies, the first step in a large-scale deployment across the Atlantic. At the end of November, GAUSSIN announced an agreement with Magna International (NYSE: MGA) whereby the latter grants GAUSSIN an exclusive worldwide license for its modular chassis for electric and hydrogen-powered heavy-duty truck applications. This 20- year agreement brings GAUSSIN into the heavy-duty truck market (PR of November 26, 2020).
At the end of November, GAUSSIN and Plug Power Inc. (NASDAQ: PLUG) announced a partnership to bring to market in 2021 a range of Gaussin transport vehicles powered by ProGen with the objective of decarbonizing the logistics ecosystem (PR of November 30, 2020). In mid-December, GAUSSIN and Robotic Research LLC announced a strategic agreement to collaborate on providing autonomous vehicle solutions with Robotic Research's AD Kit technology for fleet operations in their respective target sectors (PR of December 17, 2020).
Strong demand for zero-emission and smart vehicles
Today, GAUSSIN has international recognition that allows it to address the North American market, one of the most important in the global transport and logistics sectors. "Our partnerships with several world leaders have confirmed GAUSSIN technology's advancement in the field of clean and autonomous mobility. Today, we are ready for commercial deployment of our seaport, airports, logistic and smart cities range of products in the huge North American market, which is gaining strong momentum toward zero-emission and intelligent transportation solutions. Our strategic partnerships will significantly reduce execution risks, and improve our commercialization timeline in this market", said Christophe Gaussin, CEO of the GAUSSIN Group.
Ongoing tests of Gaussin Electric vehicles at major US based global logistics and e- commerce players
This acceleration is largely due to the boom in E-commerce and the logistics needs of all the major players in the sector. GAUSSIN is therefore reaping the rewards of its deployment over the last few years in Europe, where the Group already equips dozens of logistics centers. In order to build upon this success across the Atlantic, it was important to have a strong and dedicated American presence to govern the deployment to major logistics and e-commerce accounts.
GAUSSIN will deploy the complete portfolio of its vehicles in both battery electric and fuel cell electric, manned or fully autonomous. The future range of heavy-duty road trucks, currently under development, will also be marketed with pre-orders officially opened from Q1 2021.
An important zero-emission transport and logistics market
The U.S. market for transportation and logistics vehicles is the second largest market after China. Recent North American government initiatives to provide financial incentives for electric trucks in the form of subsidies and tax breaks, tightening emission regulation, and falling battery prices provide growth opportunities for companies like Gaussin, by making the capital investment required to purchase electric trucks more attractive relative to their diesel counterparts.