Another EV Company Now Announces Unexpected Layoffs

April 17, 2024

Another EV company now announces unexpected layoffs after pulling out of several markets due to a plunge in projected growth.

BP has cut over a tenth of the workforce in its electric vehicle charging business and pulled it out of several markets after a bet on rapid growth in commercial EV fleets didn’t pay off, company sources said.

The changes at BP Pulse are part of CEO Murray Auchincloss’s efforts to focus on the British company’s most profitable segments as it battles investor doubts over its plan to shift away from oil and gas to low-carbon energy, reports CNBC.

BP Pulse reduced the number of countries it operates in from 12 to four in recent months, focusing now on the United States, Britain, Germany and China, where it expects the fastest growth in the EV market, BP told Reuters.

As a result, the division axed over 100 jobs in recent months, or over 10% of its global workforce of 900, with many employees being moved into other divisions and only a handful leaving the company, the sources said.

BP did not comment on the exact numbers of jobs that were cut.

The move comes as automakers across the world tighten their belts amid a slower than expected uptake of EVs.

Tech publication Electrek reported on Monday that U.S. EV pioneer Tesla would lay off more than 10% of its workforce.

EV charging, however, remains one of BP’s key growth engines.

BP had over 29,000 charging points globally at the end of 2023, compared with 22,000 a year earlier, it said in its annual report.

It aims to have 100,000 points by 2030.

“Our EV ambitions have not changed,” BP said.

The changes at BP Pulse are “a step towards ensuring that we can execute our goals with even greater precision and effectiveness”.

BP last May also shut down its home EV charging business.

The company now focuses mostly on fast charging hubs.

The company says it expects returns from its EV charging and convenience stores operations to exceed 15% and create $1.5 billion in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization by 2025.

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Also Read: A Massive Grocery Brand Now Files For Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

Other Economy News Today

A massive restaurant chain now explores filing for bankruptcy after hurting its financial position by offering an affordable meal.

Red Lobster hurt its financial position by offering its popular all-you-can-eat shrimp meal for $20.

“That worked to increase traffic, but it was a money loser. That deal remains on the menu, but it now costs $25,” reports TheStreet.

Red Lobster has a proud history, and in many ways it brought lobster and seafood to markets where it otherwise was offered only in fine-dining experiences.

“What was once a single family-owned restaurant in Lakeland, Florida, now has over 700 locations around the world,” says the company on its website.

The chain has been owned by Thai Union Group, which wrote down its stake in the company earlier this year.

“During the past years, the combination of Covid-19 pandemic, sustained industry headwinds, higher interest rates and rising material and labor costs have impacted to Red Lobster business resulting in prolonged negative financial contributions to the company and its shareholders,” Thai Union said in a Jan. 16 media release.

“After detailed analysis, the board of directors has determined that Red Lobster’s ongoing financial requirements no longer align with our capital allocation priorities and therefore the company is pursuing an exit of the minority investment.”

It’s a situation that has the chain looking for a lifeline.

“Red Lobster has been getting advice from law firm King & Spalding,” Bloomberg News reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

“The dining chain is considering a possible Chapter 11 filing to shed some long-term contracts and renegotiate a swath of leases, the people said,” Bloomberg reported.

Fortress Investment Group, the company’s top lender, has been involved in the Chapter 11 discussions, according to the news service.

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Also Read: A Massive US Bank Is Now Freezing Customers’ Money

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