Sales bans in Sweden, redundancies and crises have characterized the Norwegian company since March this year. Today, the conclusion from the National Communications Authority (Nkom) is clear: They are warning that they are moving towards a ban on the sale of Easee chargers in Norway. On 14 March, the Elsäkerhetsverket introduced a ban on the sale of Easee chargers in Sweden. This led to a crisis for the company, which was forced to lay off employees and, according to DN, raise up to NOK one billion to survive. There has been great tension as to whether the Norwegian authorities will follow the Swedes. In the conclusion of Nkom, it is stated that “after careful consideration, it has been decided that there will be no objection to the Swedish Safety Agency’s conclusion in the matter”. The National Communications Authority does not object to the Swedish Safety Authority’s conclusion. Photo: Vetle Hjortland / news This could lead to a sales ban in the entire EEA for the two charging boxes from Easee. Nkom will not make an order against Easee until the court process in Sweden is finished and the case is finally settled, they report in the press release. The Easee case: This has happened The Swedish supervisory body Elsäkerhetsverket questioned Easee’s chargers Easee Home and Easee Charge in February. On March 14, it was decided to completely stop sales in Sweden. The background is, among other things, that the charging box does not have an earth fault breaker that meets the requirements of the Swedish authorities. In Norway, the Easee chargers are still sold, but several Easee dealers have temporarily stopped selling and installing the chargers. Easee has announced that they will appeal the decision to the Swedish Safety Agency, and collect money from investors. But the case can take time, and as a consequence, subcontractor Norautron sent notice of dismissal to 81 of its employees on Tuesday 21 March. On March 17, Easee announced mass layoffs of its employees. On 24 March, 138 of the company’s employees were made redundant. On 4 April, Easee announced that the Netherlands is also considering a sales ban. This is what Easee CEO of Easee, Jonas Helmikstøl, writes in a press release that they have prepared for, and respect the conclusion. – We will continue the dialogue with Nkom and learn from this. Our documentation process has not been good enough, and we will go through our routines with the support of external experts before we launch any new products. Nkom’s conclusion will have no impact on those who already have Easee chargers installed. In the press release, they announce the launch of a new charger. – This conclusion, the further dialogue with Nkom and support from external experts will help us to ensure that everything is one hundred percent in place in terms of documentation. We have been through some challenging months as a company and we have learned a lot. This is written by the company’s Chief Product Officer, Ola Njå Bertelsen. – As expected Per Samuelsson of the Electrical Safety Authority tells news that the message from Nkom was as expected. – The fact that others arrive at the same decision as us shows that we follow the same EU regulations on market control. He says that the Swedish Electricity Authority has had little contact with Nkom and Easee throughout the process. Head of department Per Samuelsson at the Swedish Safety Agency. Photo: Elsäkerhetsverket – We have received the documentation that Easee has sent to the administrative court in Sweden. We are familiarizing ourselves with this documentation, and will deliver our statement to the court by 17 July, says Samuelsson. When all documentation and statements have been submitted to the administrative court, it is expected that the court will take time to make a decision. Elsäkerhetsverket’s Samuelsson expects that it may take up to a year before the verdict is handed down. It is a matter that is a high priority, while the material is extensive, he says. – Now we have to wait and see what the administrative court says. – Easee now announces that they will come with a new charger. What do you think about it? – We welcome the exchange of technology, as long as it happens in the right way, says Samuelsson. Moves towards a ban in the entire EEA If no other countries in the EEA object to the conclusion from the Swedish Elsäkerhetsverket by 15 June, Easee will be obliged to follow up the decision throughout the EEA. Then the administrative court in Sweden must also confirm the decision. This means a sales ban in all countries in the EEA, including Norway. – Our conclusion today does not lead to an immediate sales ban in Norway today. How likely it is that there will be a trading ban, I will not comment or speculate on. This is what department director at Nkom, John-Eivind Velure told news. Department director at Nkom, John-Eivind Velure. Photo: Vetle Hjortland / news – What we see Easee lacks documentation of how the product will be over time. In this case, they have not been able to document well enough that everything is in line with the regulations. No errors have been reported that could cause danger to life and health. The Directorate for Social Security and Emergency Preparedness (DSB) reports that they have no indications that the charger is dangerous in use. Marit Endresen is department director at DSB. She writes that people who use Easee chargers at home can still use it in the usual way. The heart of the dispute In recent months, Nkom has gone through the documentation from the Swedish Electricity Authority. It is the earth fault protection in particular that the Swedes have responded to. They believe, among other things, that the earth fault circuit breaker must be mechanical, and that there must be a physical button on the box. Easee’s switch is digital and can only be turned on and off manually via an app. Easee, for its part, is clear that the charging box is safe. They refer to 600,000 installed electric car chargers in Norway and Europe and almost 60 million charging sessions. In any case, the Swedish Safety Agency lacks a risk analysis that proves that Easee’s solution is as good or better than the standard solutions. Founder Jonas Helmikstøl has previously stated that the case is about documentation, not security. Jonas Helmikstøl, founder of Easee. Photo: Tom Edvindsen / news – We could have taken care of things even more. We have grown extremely fast, and have taken on board the things that have come up. It has nothing to do with product safety, Helmikstøl told news in March. Lifebuoy Until the Swedes dropped the bomb on 14 March, Easee was a formidable success story. The company had sales of around NOK 2 billion in 2022, according to DN. In the same year, founder Helmikstøl had an estimated fortune of 2.3 billion, according to Kapital. Nkom’s decision may have consequences for Easee’s future. Basically, the entire EU/EEA must follow the Swedes and ban the charger, but Easee has a lifeline: A country that disagrees with the Swedes’ conclusion can ask the European Commission to decide the matter. If the commission also believes that the Swedes are wrong, the sales ban in Sweden must be lifted.
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Announces sales ban for Easee chargers in Norway – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
