Otovo, a Norway-based operator of an online marketplace for solar, storage and wall boxes, has announced plans to lay off approximately 170 employees.
The company, which operates in 13 European countries, employed 384 people at the end of 2023. CEO Andreas Thorsheim said on LinkedIn that Otovo aims to save between NOK 200 million ($18.4 million) and NOK 225 million from the job cuts.
In the first half of 2024, Otovo’s revenue fell from approximately NOK 592 million to NOK 322 million compared to the same period last year. The company’s after-tax loss increased to approximately NOK 197 million, compared to approximately NOK 142 million in the first two quarters of the previous year.
“We are now taking a new course with a leaner design and therefore using a less risky approach. And in a way that we hope will preserve options and allow us to continue implementation for the foreseeable future,” said Thorsheim.
Thorsheim said the layoffs are necessary to achieve profitability in the current market environment. In the 2023 annual report, he noted that the company was poorly positioned amid a general decline in demand in Europe. Otovo has the largest market share in countries with slowing expansion and small shares in regions with strong growth. The share price has fallen 97% in the past year.
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