Polestar suffers $US1 billion quarterly loss
But new global boss insists underlying financial signs are goodThe News
The roll-out of the Polestar 5 flagship has taken place at the Munich motor show amid renewed concerns about the financial viability of the company.
The Key Details
- The Chinese-Swedish EV specialist lost over $1 billion US dollars in Q2 2025
- The loss was revealed just days before the launch of its new $200k flagship, the Polestar 5
- The massive loss is the latest in a series of short and long-term financial headwinds for Polestar, which has never made money
- New Polestar CEO Michael Lohscheller has made major changes to the business since taking control last October
- He claims the underlying financial signs for the business are headed in the right direction
The Finer Details
A disastrous financial quarter for Polestar, which saw the company lose $US1.03 billion ($A1.56 billion) in Q2 2025, was triggered by an impairment charge on the US-built version of the Polestar 3 SUV, to the tune of a whopping $US739 million ($1.122 billion).
An impairment charge is a permanent reduction in an asset’s value and it’s been applied to the US-made Polestar 3 – it’s also built in China, which supplies Australian-delivered models – because of tariffs and higher than expected production costs.
“That was very much driven by the US situation and that’s a one-time impact we had to book,” explained Polestar CEO Michael Lohscheller.
“That’s why you get the headlines ‘hey the losses are big’.”
Lohscheller countered those headlines by reeling off positive financial news from the first half of 2025, including a lift in global sales primarily on the back of the launch of the Polestar 4 medium SUV.
“Volume was up 51 per cent, revenue was up 56 per cent. For the first time in the history of Polestar we achieved a positive operating gross margin,” he said.
“Costs are coming down and EBITA (earnings before interest, taxes and amortisation) losses are also reducing.”
Lohscheller has abandoned the direct sales model of his predecessor Thomas Ingenlath, and recruited Volvo dealers globally to add Polestar to their roster. This includes Australia.
He’s also recast Polestar’s future product plans by prioritising the introduction of the Polestar 7 compact SUV in early 2028.
The 7 will be built in a Volvo plant in Slovakia, avoiding import tariffs from China into Europe, which is expected to be its biggest market.
Another high-volume model, the second-generation Polestar 2 is also likely to leapfrog the high-cost low-volume (and expensive) Polestar 6 sports car in the schedule.
The P6 was going to share the same aluminium-intensive construction as the 5 but Lohscheller won’t guarantee its future.
“We have Polestar 6 and we want to do it. But guaranteed is a strong word, but that is our intention to do the Polestar 6,” he said.
As a result of the postponement, the British-based Polestar engineering division that developed the 5 and was in charge of the 6, has been reduced from a staff of 600 to 150.
The Road Ahead
For the moment, Polestar survives on the goodwill of Li Shufu, the chief of parent company Geely. His company, PDS Investments, has taken an increased stake in the company.
With the P5 the last all-new product until the Polestar 7 in 2028, the company’s focus must be on improving sales of its current line-up via its new dealer network.
Related: 2025 Polestar 3 sets Guinness World Record for range
Related: New battery for base 2025 Polestar 2
Related: Tesla Australia’s fightback hits pause
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