Polestar’s chairman plans to step down as a part of a broader board shuffle for an electrical automobile maker battling operational challenges and inventory woes.
Håkan Samuelsson, the previous chief government officer of Volvo Automobile, can be changed as board chair by present director Winfried Vahland, Polestar stated Tuesday in an announcement. One other board member, Carla De Geyseleer, gained’t stand for reelection on the upcoming annual shareholder assembly, the corporate stated.
Polestar has proposed Christine Gorjanc and Xiaojie Shen as new administrators.
The modifications come amid a gradual, two-year-long decline within the share value. Since its New York itemizing by way of a blank-check merger in 2022, Polestar has been battling operational challenges, together with the producer’s slower-than-expected ramp up and a cooling demand for EVs. Final month, Nasdaq warned the corporate it might be delisted after administration didn’t file a 2023 annual report with the US securities regulator on time. Samuelsson was a driving drive within the inventory market listings of each Polestar and Volvo.
Earlier this yr Volvo distributed a big a part of its Polestar stake to shareholders — specifically entities of dad or mum firm Geely — to alleviate a few of the strain by itself steadiness sheet. Because the itemizing, the EV maker has repeatedly tapped its largest house owners for funds.
When the share switch and new possession construction was introduced in February, Chief Government Officer Thomas Ingenlath stated it could give Polestar “a extra outlined and diversified possession construction” and place it as a “sturdy, extra unbiased model” within the Geely ecosystem. Regardless of the measures, Polestar’s shares have slumped one other roughly 69% this yr, giving the maker of the Polestar 4 SUV a market valuation of $1.5 billion.
