BlackRock close to investing 500 million euros in Ionity -sources

People are seen in front of a showroom that hosts BlackRock in Davos
People are seen in front of a showroom that hosts BlackRock in Davos, Switzerland Januar 22, 2020. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann

FRANKFURT, Oct 21 (Reuters) - BlackRock (BLK.N) is close to investing around 500 million euros ($582 million) in electric vehicle charging group Ionity, two people familiar with the matter said.

There is no guarantee that a deal will materialise and talks between the parties could still fall apart, the people added.

Ionity, whose owners include Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE), Daimler (DAIGn.DE), BMW (BMWG.DE) and Ford (F.N), in March said it was examining ways to expand its network of fast-chargers across Europe.

Sources told Reuters in June that Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) and Renault (RENA.PA) were among those interested in taking a 20-25% stake valued at 400-500 million euros. read more

BlackRock declined to comment on the investment, which was first reported by manager magazin.

A spokesperson for Ionity declined to comment, saying that the company was constantly discussing additional investment possibilities with its shareholders, which also include Hyundai Motor (005380.KS), and that additional investors were welcome.

($1 = 0.8593 euros)

Reporting by Christoph Steitz, Editing by Nick Zieminski

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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