The ailing Swiss solar company Meyer Burger has announced a major restructuring programme. The CEO is leaving the company, and numerous employees will also lose their jobs.
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CEO Gunter Erfurt is leaving with immediate effect. However, he will continue to support the Board of Directors in an advisory capacity during a transitional period.
Chairman of the Board of Directors Franz Richter will now take over operational management. He has been on the company’s Board of Directors since 2015 and has been Chairman since 2021. Most recently, he was CEO at Süss MicroTec. He also holds the position of Chairman of the Board of Directors at Dr. Hönle AG.
Chief Financial Officer Markus Nikles will also be leaving the company. He will step down at the end of September. Ralf Hermkens in the US and Frank Zimmermann in Europe will take over responsibility for finance and controlling.
The planned “streamlining” of the entire Group structure will be accompanied by massive job cuts, as the company announced on Wednesday. The number of employees worldwide is to be reduced by 200 to 850 by the end of 2025. The reduction is to take place disproportionately in Germany. In the US, the number of employees is expected to increase in order to reach full production capacity at the newly built plant in Goodyear, Arizona. The company has its headquarters in Thun, less than an hour from Bern.
Meyer Burger aims to return to profitability with the new restructuring program. Specifically, Meyer Burger is aiming for sales of CHF350 to 400 million ($415-475 million) and EBITDA in the mid double-digit million range by 2026.
The forecasts are based on existing production capacities and long-term contracts with major customers, the company added. The production areas in Thalheim (Germany) and Goodyear (US) as well as the technology capability in Hohenstein-Ernstthal (Germany) are to be retained. As is well known, Meyer Burger had only recently partially discontinued its production in Germany and wanted to focus on the US market in the future.
The Executive Board, which has now been reduced to three members, will initially focus on “quickly returning to profitability”, according to the statement.
In order to generate further sales, Meyer Burger is also examining the sale of technology and equipment to strategic customers in the areas of solar cell production and module technology.
Furthermore, liquidity in the operating business will continue to be supported by sales of solar modules from current inventories and additionally by the sale of other assets. In order to close the remaining financing gap, various unspecified options are currently being examined.
Translated from German by DeepL/jdp
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