SMA to cut 425 jobs and ditch China location under restructuring

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email

PV inverter supplier SMA Solar is to lay off 425 full-time staff and discontinue China as a location as part of a restructuring plan announced in September in order to return the company to profitability quickly.

The planned restructuring measures, due to be implemented from January 2019, include the sale of the Chinese companies to the management there.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

“With the measures that have now been resolved, the SMA Managing Board is demonstrating its commitment to Germany as a business location. The measures are aimed at reducing SMA’s fixed costs and making optimal use of our capacity at the headquarters by focusing on our core competencies, outsourcing and automating activities, and reorganizing structures. Unfortunately, the reduction of the global workforce by around 425 full-time positions is unavoidable in this context. It is very important to us to implement the planned staff reduction in a socially responsible way,” said SMA CEO Dr. Jürgen Reinert. “The sale of the business units in China to the management there will create good conditions for the positive further development of business on both sides. In order to secure SMA’s success in the long term, we will increasingly press ahead with the process begun to develop the company into a systems and solutions provider and will continue to invest in the future-oriented areas of energy management, storage integration, repowering, and digital business models.”

Of the job cuts, more than 100 relate to Germany and more than 300 to the foreign locations. 

In October, the long-standing CEO Pierre-Pascal Urbon suddenly stepped down from his executive role and said he planned to leave the company altogether at the end of December 2018.

In November, the firm lowered both its revenue and profit forecast again for 2018, citing continued ‘strong pricing pressure’ through November.

Read Next

October 6, 2025
German solar inverter manufacturer SMA Solar will cut 350 jobs in 2026 as it adapts to the “weak” residential PV market.
October 2, 2025
The European solar sector will lose around 5% of its jobs in 2025, the first contraction in employment for the sector in nearly a decade.
October 1, 2025
North Carolina-based engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) company Blue Ridge Power has laid off more than 500 of its employees at two locations.
September 29, 2025
German renewables developer ABO Energy is looking to begin owning and operating its energy projects in a transition from a “pure play” developer to an independent power producer (IPP) model.
September 23, 2025
European power purchase agreement (PPA) prices fell 0.6% between July and August this year, according to Swiss consultancy Pexpark.
September 17, 2025
Struggling Swiss solar manufacturer Meyer Burger has formally entered into a debt moratorium, with the possibility of rescuing the entire group now looking unlikely.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
October 21, 2025
New York, USA
Solar Media Events
November 25, 2025
Warsaw, Poland
Solar Media Events
December 2, 2025
Málaga, Spain
Solar Media Events
February 3, 2026
London, UK