Major Dutch Electric Vehicle Charging Pioneer Declares Bankruptcy

2026-09-01 community

Hengelo, Tuesday, 1 September 2026.
On August 31, 2026, four subsidiaries of Dutch charging pioneer We Drive Solar went bankrupt, leaving a 12-million-euro debt and striking a blow to investor Kees Koolen’s green hub.

The Collapse of a Pioneer’s Production Line

The clean energy sector in the Netherlands faced a major setback when the Almelo court officially declared four subsidiaries of We Drive Solar bankrupt on Monday, August 31, 2026 [1][6]. The filings, which were submitted on Friday, August 28, 2026, target We Drive Solar Netherlands B.V., We Drive Solar Operations, We Drive Solar Electronic Controllers, and Chargers Production [3][4]. These entities operated from the Europalaan 202 in Hengelo, Overijssel, situated at ‘The Green Box’ clean-tech campus [1][4][6]. The local manufacturing operations have ceased, dealing a direct blow to the region’s hardware innovation pipeline [1][2].

Job Losses and Technical Disruptions

The bankruptcies have left a significant human toll, with 32 to 33 employees at the Hengelo facility losing their jobs [2][3]. Meanwhile, five employees working at the Utrecht-based parent company will remain employed [3]. This means that approximately 86.486% of the combined workforce has been laid off [3]. We Drive Solar was highly regarded as an early pioneer in vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology, designing bi-directional charging stations that allowed electric vehicles to feed energy back into the electricity grid during peak demand periods [2][5]. The bankruptcy directly halts the in-house production and development of these specialized V2G chargers [5].

Market Pressures and Financial Strain

According to founder and director Robin Berg, the primary drivers behind the collapse were intense market competition and severe price pressure, particularly within the public charging station segment [2][3][5]. We Drive Solar had previously built momentum by delivering 6,000 standard public charging stations across the Zuid-Holland province, but it subsequently lost the follow-up tender to a competitor [5]. The company was unable to secure other large public tenders to fill the resulting manufacturing gap, making continued production financially unviable [5].

A Widening Crack in Koolen’s Green Empire

The financial fallout of the bankruptcy is substantial, with total outstanding debts reaching approximately 12 million euros [2]. High-profile clean-energy investor Kees Koolen, who acquired a 70% stake in We Drive Solar in 2021, is currently the largest creditor [2][3]. The financial health of We Drive Solar Netherlands B.V.—originally established in May 2019 with a modest paid-up capital of 2,500 euros [6]—had been under pressure for some time; its 2024 annual accounts were filed late, lacked an external auditor’s approval, and showed negative equity [3]. This failure adds to a series of setbacks for Koolen, who saw seven of his other green startups go bankrupt two years ago [2], alongside recent financial difficulties at other portfolio firms like Hardt Hyperloop and Proton [3].

What Lies Ahead for V2G Technology

Despite the halt in local manufacturing, the consumer-facing operations and the brand’s core partnerships will continue [2][3][5]. The parent company and its joint project with Renault and MyWheels remain unaffected by the bankruptcy filings [3][5]. Berg has reassured existing private customers that their warranties and support remain valid [5]. To resume hardware deliveries, Berg is currently negotiating with two external manufacturers [5]. He expects the first newly outsourced chargers to ship to customers in approximately two months, with full V2G integration projected to go live around the turn of the year [5]. Concurrently, bankruptcy trustee Arco Blankestijn is managing the liquidation process and evaluating whether any of the bankrupt Hengelo-based subsidiaries can be restarted [2][3].

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Koolen Industries clean-tech bankruptcy