Peter Bardenfleth-Hansen. Foto: Zaptec
Peter Bardenfleth-Hansen brings extensive experience from across the e-mobility industry and has already been part of Zaptec as a board member since fall 2020. In his role as the new CEO, he has been positioning Zaptec even more strongly as one of the leading providers of charging systems for electric cars in Norway, Europe and worldwide since April 2022.
“As a board member, I witnessed Zaptec’s IPO and was already involved in the strategic direction for the future. This background has prepared me perfectly for the role of CEO. I am honored by the trust placed in me. At Zaptec, we have dedicated, qualified employees* in all offices. I look forward to working with this great team to achieve the goals we have set,” says Bardenfleth-Hansen.
The man who brought Tesla to Norway
Bardenfleth-Hansen originally comes from the hotel and restaurant industry and became an expert in electric cars and charging systems rather by accident. “I wanted to write an article about electric sports cars for the membership magazine of the nightclub for which I worked as marketing manager. For this, I conducted an interview with a then unknown but promising electric mobility pioneer: Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla,” Bardenfleth-Hansen recalls. At the time, the Tesla Roadster was about to be launched and Musk was in the process of building a team to represent Tesla in Northern Europe. “At the end of the interview, a colleague and I had firm employment contracts from Tesla in our pockets – I really didn’t expect that. I had been through an insolvency and didn’t know my way around electric mobility. But in fact, Musk was precisely looking for people like me who wouldn’t let a setback throw them off their path and could see the industry with a fresh eye,” Bardenfleth-Hansen continues.
Extensive expertise and clear leadership style
The 52-year-old became the first Tesla leader in Norway. During his ten years with the company, he later served as regional manager for the Nordic region. After that, he remained loyal to the industry, serving as a board member and consultant for a number of companies, including Volta Trucks, CAKE, Viggo Ridehailing, Evyon, Monta and Alpha Motors. Describing his leadership style, Bardenfleth-Hansen says, “The entire organization must have a clear vision that it stands for. When everyone pulls together, it creates exactly the kind of cohesion that is crucial to the company’s success.”
The Zaptec-Hansen future
Bardenfleth-Hansen has clear, ambitious goals for Zaptec: “We already have subsidiaries in Germany, Switzerland, the UK, Denmark, France, Italy and the Netherlands. Electromobility is not yet as widespread here as in Norway – we want to change that. The U.S. and Canada are also exciting markets for further expansion.” To this end, the company is focusing on strategic partnerships that offer end users real added value. “We don’t just want to be a provider of products, but rather offer intelligent solutions that simplify electromobility for users and promote the widespread availability of charging points throughout Europe,” concludes Peter Bardenfleth-Hansen.
