Lotus cuts another 200 jobs citing lack of market demand

Lotus has confirmed a new wave of redundancies, with up to 200 jobs expected to be impacted. The move follows significant job cuts in July 2023 and January this year. The Norfolk-based sports car manufacturer says it is still focused on delivering customer cars and “fulfilling our order book”. 

In a statement made to Auto Express, Lotus said: “The latest proposed organisational changes at Lotus Cars are to ensure that the company has the right organisation structure in place to ensure sustainable operations. Following a review of resources in line with market demand and evolving market conditions, the company is optimising its internal processes and structures to achieve its long-term business objectives.”

Those organisational changes were announced to staff yesterday with Lotus anticipating “up to 200 UK-based roles to be impacted”. The firm does say that it will look to support the redeployment of staff and “plan to look for ways to retain specific skills and knowledge within the business”. Lotus UK employed 1,699 people at the end of 2023.

While CEO Qingfeng Feng retains his position, Simon Lane, who was the Executive Director of Lotus’ Advanced Performance programme, left the company last week. The all-electric Evija supercar was presented by the Advanced Performance team and despite Lane’s departure, Lotus says it is still committed to the Evija. 

Lotus also says that it is still expecting to launch the Type 135 electric sports car by 2027, following its unveiling in 2026. The Theory 1 reveal in the summer pointed towards the Type 135’s design, which will be influenced by Lotus’ current internal-combustion engined sports car, the Emira.