Lotus Says 200 of Its Employees' Jobs Are 'at Risk'

Things weren’t looking great for Lotus earlier this year when it announced a net loss of $202 million in the second quarter of 2024. The company’s sales are up this year, but that’s not translating into tangible profits at home. Now, the company is preparing to lay off up to 200 employees in the United Kingdom.

The reduction in headcount will ensure the automaker “has the right organization structure in place to ensure sustainable operations,” Lotus said in a statement to Auto Express. The company is working to better align its output with market demand after cutting its deliveries forecast by over 50 percent a few months ago, reducing it from 26,000 to 12,000 units.

Through the first nine months of the year, Lotus saw sales jump 134 percent. Sales for its two electric vehicles, the Eletre SUV and Emeya sedan, were up alongside the gas-powered Emira, which finally on sale in the United States after years of delays. The company will announce its third-quarter results later this month. 

Interest in pricey performance EVs is waning as high-end buyers sway back toward desiring combustion-powered vehicles. This could slow the company’s turnaround as it prepares for a future previewed by the Theory 1 Concept, an electric hypercar.

The Type 135, an electric sports car that'll take cues from the Theory 1, is still on track to debut in 2026 before hitting the road in 2027. While Lotus’s sales are up, they are still far below what it expected to achieve, and now it has to realign to a new, harsher market.