Tritium to take EV charger manufacturing operations offshore

Electric vehicle fast-charging station manufacturer Tritium has announced it will shut its Brisbane factory and move its manufacturing operations overseas in an attempt to improve operational efficiency and margins to drive profitability.

Tritium has its headquarters and a factory in Brisbane but last year opened a factory in Tennessee in the US to access government incentives and tap into the north American market.

In a statement, Tritium Chief Executive Officer Jane Hunter said the company would now be consolidating its global manufacturing operations into its plant in Tennessee, as well as reducing expenses through staff cuts.

“These changes reduce our capital requirements and hasten the timing of the company becoming EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation) positive,” she said.

“The implementation of this plan … supports the ongoing market competitiveness and positioning of the company … while bringing our manufacturing operations closer to our largest markets.”

Tritium is among the world’s biggest manufacturers of fast chargers with the company claiming it has a fleet of more than 14,500 chargers across 47 countries but it has struggled to raise capital since it listed on the US-based Nasdaq stock exchange in 2021.

Last month Tritium announced it had recorded revenue of USD 185 million ($292.4 million) for the 2023 financial year, more than double the level of 2022, but the company also reported a gross margin of negative 2% for 2022-23.

Hunter has said the fundamentals of the business remain good but a strategic restructure “is necessary to drive both profitability and shareholder value.”

“This transition is aligned with the company’s plan to be profitable in 2024,” she said.

Tritium said it will retain its research and development operations and testing facility at its Brisbane plant, but will reduce staff numbers and contractors, and reduce expenses on sales, and administration.