Norwegian shore power startup Zinus doubles revenue to $22M
What's the deal? Zinus, a Norwegian cleantech company that builds cable management systems for shore power and ship charging, doubled its revenue to 230 million Norwegian kroner (~$22M) in 2025. The company also welcomed US commodities giant Hartree Partners as a "significant minority shareholder," though the size of the stake was not disclosed.
"There is strong interest from several international investor communities looking to take ownership in Zinus, and this is a good sign that we are being noticed well beyond our national borders," said chief executive Endre Eidsvik.
Hartree Partners is a global commodities firm specialising in energy, founded in 1997 with over 700 employees. It is part-owned by funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management, which is majority-owned by Brookfield Asset Management.
Why now? Regulatory tailwinds are pushing demand for port electrification. California's CARB rules and the EU's AFIR and FuelEU frameworks are forcing ports and shipping companies to adopt shore power — exactly what Zinus sells.
The company opened offices in Italy and Seattle in 2025. The US office is designed in part to ensure its products qualify for "Made in the USA" requirements. Zinus, founded in 2018 and based in Bømlo, had around 50 employees at the start of 2025 with plans to grow to 65.
What could go wrong? Zinus is betting on regulatory momentum that could shift — particularly in the US, where trade and environmental policy can change quickly. Scaling a hardware business across continents also brings supply chain and execution risk.
The signal: Zinus now counts six institutional owners. Alongside Hartree, the cap table includes Eastern Pacific Shipping Ventures (Singapore), Norway's state-backed Nysnø Climate Investments, LOS Gruppen, Eviny Ventures, and DSD. EPS Ventures and Nysnø invested a combined 50 million kroner (~$4.8M) at the turn of 2024/2025.
The entry of a major commodities trader signals that maritime electrification is moving from niche cleantech into mainstream energy infrastructure. George Potts, who leads Hartree's technology investments, said the firm would bring "trading expertise and capacity across global shipping and energy infrastructure markets" to accelerate Zinus' rollout.
Read more: shifter.no
