TAMPA, Fla. — Florida-based car rental company Hertz said Monday it planned to buy up to 65,000 electric vehicles from the Swedish electric car maker Polestar. The purchase of the companies will take place over the next five years.
Financial terms were not disclosed. The vehicles are expected to be available in Europe in the spring and in North America and Australia later this year.
The announcement on Monday comes more than five months after Hertz said that it will buy 100,000 electric vehicles from Tesla. That's one of the largest purchases of battery-powered cars in history. Hertz also said at the time that it will establish its own electric vehicle charging network as it strives to produce the largest rental fleet of electric vehicles in North America.
Hertz plans to have its electric vehicles available for its leisure and business customers, as well as ride-share drivers.
“By working with electric vehicle industry leaders like Polestar, we can help accelerate the adoption of electrification while providing renters, corporate customers, and rideshare partners a premium electric vehicle product, exceptional experience and lower carbon footprint,” Hertz CEO Stephen Scherr said in a statement.
Shares of Hertz Global Holdings Inc. rose 2.4% in before-hours trading.
