Porsche subsidiary closures: Stuttgart maker to close three units and affect roughly 500 jobs
Porsche subsidiary closures will shutter Cellforce, eBike Performance and Cetitec, affecting around 500 employees as the automaker refocuses on sports-car line.
Porsche announced that its board and supervisory board have approved the closure of three subsidiary companies as part of a broader cost-cutting and strategic refocus on the company’s core sports-car business. The move — described by management as a consolidation of non-core activities — will affect roughly 500 employees across Germany and Croatia, though the exact timetable for winding down the units was left unspecified. CEO Michael Leiters acknowledged the decision while declining to set a firm completion date for the closures.
Porsche board approves closure of three subsidiaries
The Stuttgart-based automaker said the affected subsidiaries are Cellforce, Porsche eBike Performance GmbH, and software firm Cetitec. The decision was taken jointly by the company’s executive board and supervisory board as part of a package of austerity measures introduced amid slower margins in the sports-car market. Management framed the closures as a necessary step to concentrate investment and resources on Porsche’s core automotive operations.
Workforce impact and company headcount
Porsche’s announcement estimates around 500 jobs will be impacted across the three entities. The company specified that approximately 50 positions at Cellforce in Kirchentellinsfurt will be affected, roughly 350 roles at Porsche eBike Performance — which operates sites in Ottobrunn and Zagreb — and about 90 positions at Cetitec, which has operations in Pforzheim and Croatia. Porsche has not yet detailed severance terms, reassignments or support measures for employees during the wind-down.
Operations, sites and product lines to be halted
Cellforce, the battery specialist, will see its activities discontinued, removing an in-house battery development capacity tied to emerging powertrain projects. Porsche eBike Performance will cease development of e-bike drive systems, halting a program that combined mobility branding with niche electric propulsion technology. Cetitec, a software development shop, will be closed as Porsche narrows its external technology portfolio and redirects software investment into prioritized, in‑house platforms.
Strategic rationale and financial context
Porsche said the closures form part of a wider retrenchment to safeguard profitability as the company tightens spending and reallocates capital to core vehicle programs. The move follows earlier signals that Porsche would trim non-essential holdings, including plans to divest stakes in other premium brands. Executives argue that concentrating on the high-margin sports-car franchise will improve operational focus and free resources for product development and electrification within Porsche’s mainline business.
Festo announces major German job reductions nearby
Separately, German automation group Festo revealed it will cut around 1,300 jobs in Germany, citing shifting market conditions, rising competition from Asia and geopolitical strain. The family-owned company, based in Esslingen, said the reductions are intended to reshape domestic cost structures and secure funding for a broader corporate transformation. Festo expects to achieve roughly €200 million in annual savings worldwide and has indicated that no German production sites are planned for closure despite the headcount reductions.
Industry pressures and regional implications
Both announcements underscore mounting pressure across Germany’s manufacturing and automotive supply chains as companies respond to lower demand and increased global competition. The decisions will have local effects in Baden-Württemberg, a region concentrated with suppliers and specialist engineering firms, where employment ties between manufacturers and smaller tech ventures are tightly interwoven. Policy makers and regional chambers will likely monitor social impacts and pressure firms to support transitions for affected workers.
Porsche has left the precise schedule for the closures open, saying only that board and supervisory approvals have been secured and that implementation will proceed in accordance with legal and contractual obligations. Management has not provided a date for completion, but confirmed that affected employees will be notified and that the company will determine next steps for remaining assets and intellectual property during the wind-down process.
