With the campaign #savesion The Munich-based company tried until the very last minute to find new reservations and investors for the electric car with solar panels. Sono Motors has now announced that the project has failed and the Sion car will be discontinued. Instead, the company plans to focus on its B2B business. Sono offers solar technology for retrofitting and integration into third-party vehicles.
“The restructuring is a crucial step in the development of Sono Motors,”
says Laurin Hahn, Co-founder and CEO of Sono Motors.
"Even though we had to discontinue our original passion project with the Sion program, shifting our entire focus to B2B solar solutions offers us the opportunity to continue developing innovative products in the solar industry. Despite more than 45,000 reservations and pre-orders for the Sion, we were forced to respond to the ongoing instability in the financial markets and streamline our business. This decision was not an easy one."
End of Sion: 300 employees have to leave
The Pursue is now planning to lay off around 300 employees, including the COO Thomas Hausch. He says:
"Unfortunately, my task at Sono Motors to build the first affordable solar electric car ends. I am personally convinced that sooner or later we will have many SEVs (Solar Electric Vehicles, d. Red.) on the road, even without the Sion. The company and its founders will continue to pursue the vision of a world without fossil fuels, even with the new focus. That makes me optimistic about the future."
The money already paid for vehicles is to be repaid in several installments starting in May 2023.
