Deliveries of Polestar fall in the third quarter of the year

According to data provided by the company itself, in the third quarter of this year Polestar delivered around 11,900 electric vehicles. That is 2,000 units fewer than in the same period last year and 1,250 fewer than in the second quarter of 2024. We are therefore facing a downward trend that has remained constant throughout the year, since each quarter has recorded figures lower than the previous year’s. This is quite worrying.

So far, throughout 2024, Polestar has delivered a total of 32,300 vehicles, compared with the 41,800 vehicles delivered in the first three quarters of 2023. This represents a decline of 22.7 percent.

This decline is especially worrying when we also consider that Polestar has expanded its model range compared with what it offered in 2023. Thus, while in the third quarter of 2023 sales were focused exclusively on the Polestar 2, the Swedish firm now also sells the Polestar 4 and Polestar 3 models.

Polestar has a problem right now

The fact that Polestar has centralised the production of all its models mostly in China will not help it recover sales volumes in the coming quarters, given the increase in special tariffs on vehicles from this Asian country, both in the European and North American markets. Only the Polestar 3 is currently also produced outside China, more specifically in the United States.

On top of the poor sales results, the company is currently going through a period of transition with major changes in its management team. Thomas Ingenlath, the firm’s founder and chief executive, recently left the company, handing over the post to Michael Lohscheller, former head of Opel.

But this has not been the only departure for the company: Max Missoni, Head of Design with a very close working relationship with Ingenlath, has also left his post. And Jean-François Mady, a former Stellantis executive, is the new Chief Financial Officer. It should also be noted that Volvo significantly reduced its stake in the company at the beginning of the year, leaving Geely as the main shareholder.

As the new Chief Executive Officer, Lohscheller has started by readjusting the company’s sales model, a change that could be starting to look positive. In statements to the media, Lohscheller himself has said the key to the company’s future success lies in developing its own commercial capabilities, moving from showing cars to actively selling them. We’ll see how the move turns out.