The plans for Polestar's new headquarters in Gothenburg are hanging by a thin thread due to massive debts, media write.
The Polestar car brand, which is deeply in debt and under financial pressure, has plans to establish a new headquarters in central Gothenburg. But according to the Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter (DN), it is now more than uncertain whether Polestar can afford the construction.
About a year and a half ago, Polestar announced that it would build a large and modern headquarters on the banks of the Göta Älv in the middle of Gothenburg.
The project covers around 80,000 square meters. Enough space for 3,000 employees to go about their daily business on the site, which will accommodate everything from the global headquarters to the design center. But now the project has faced several challenges. Not least on the economy.
One of the biggest challenges Polestar faces is the lack of a business partner. Apparently, no one wants to own and then rent out the headquarters to the Chinese brand.
At the same time, Polestar is struggling with significant debt and financial problems that are prompting workforce cuts. Something that casts doubt on whether the brand even has the necessary funds to pay for a headquarters on the scale that was talked about a year and a half ago.
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Gothenburg's city planning director, Henrik Kant, tells DN that the schedule for the project has changed significantly.
– From the beginning, there was a clear timetable with severe time pressure. Then Polestar has requested to wait because they are looking for a builder.
However, Polestar has not given up on the project and denies that the plans for the headquarters were dropped. The car brand maintains that construction is still part of their future strategy. At the same time, Polestar expects to have more to say about the construction 'at the beginning of the new year'.
The new managing director, Michael Lohscheller, plans to present a strategic update on January 16, which, according to Polestar itself, will also be about the construction of the new headquarters.
It is thus unclear whether Polestar can overcome the economic challenges and realize the project in Gothenburg, or whether other solutions will be necessary. Conversely, it is already established that Polestar has become partly Indian. Read more about it here .
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