Porsche is realigning its battery activities in response to the slower ramp-up of electromobility and evolving conditions in key markets such as China and the US.
The previous expansion plans for high-performance battery production by Porsche’s subsidiary, Cellforce Group, are being set aside, leading to job cuts.
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Cellforce Group is now slated to continue as an independent research and development unit with a focus on the development of battery cells.
Porsche has committed to a socially responsible approach to the associated staff reductions, with PowerCo, Volkswagen Group’s battery competence centre, offering to introduce affected employees to job opportunities at its sites.
Porsche Research and Development executive board member Michael Steiner said: “With the construction of the factory in Kirchentellinsfurt in 2022, we have set an exclamation mark in the industry and for Germany as a business location. Unfortunately, the market for electric vehicles worldwide has not developed as originally thought. The framework conditions have changed fundamentally and we have to react to them.”
“We will continue to invest in all-electric models with high-performance batteries in the future. The new R&D unit can play an important role in this. Here we bundle our experience in the development of high-performance cells and also contribute this to the Group. As such, PowerCo will use the independent R&D unit and place development orders for high-performance cells there.”
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By GlobalDataThe company said its investment in battery cell research and development underscores its ongoing commitment to electric vehicles (EVs), a path it began in 2019.
Despite the global variances in e-mobility adoption, Europe has experienced significant growth, with around 57% of vehicles being electrified in the first half of 2025, surpassing the target set for Porsche’s initial public offering (IPO).
Globally, the company reached an electrification rate of approximately 36% during the same period.
Porsche said it continues to maintain a flexible range of drive systems, planning to offer combustion engine, hybrid, and all-electric options across all segments into the 2030s.
