It was well known that demand for inverters has stalled. However, the extent to which companies are suffering as a result was first demonstrated by Fronius' move. At the beginning of June, the technology group registered 350 employees working in the "Solar Energy" division in Sattledt (Upper Austria) with the Public Employment Service for redundancy.

"At Fronius, community is very important to us and may also cost us something. Unfortunately, however, the measures taken so far have not been sufficient and we therefore have to drastically reduce our personnel costs," said owner Elisabeth Engelbrechtsmüller-Strauß, who spoke of a "painful day for the company".

1000 employees on internal short-time working
What has happened since then? After the 30-day retention period, the affected employees will now be made redundant, it is said. Internal short-time working, which was introduced at the end of 2023, will remain in place until the end of the current year. Around 1000 employees are currently on this part-time scheme.

Scherleitner now heads the solar division
And how is demand developing? Because the wholesalers' stocks are still very high, there have not yet been any major breakthroughs. Behind the scenes, Fronius is also scrutinizing the processes and procedures in the "Solar Energy" area. One consequence of this is that manager Harald Scherleitner has taken over the reins, while his predecessor Martin Hackl remains with the company but will devote more time to lobbying and association work.

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