News

SWVL Plans To Lay Off Around 400 Employees

The announcement of the layoff didn’t mention how the decision would affect SWVL’s planned expansion to Colombia, Mexico, South Africa, and the United States.

Published

8 months ago

June 1, 2022

David Morelo

swvl plans to lay off around 400 employees

SWVL, a Dubai-based provider of technology-enabled mass transit solutions, has announced its plan to lay off 32 percent of its workforce (around 400 employees) to better cope with the new economic reality the company has found itself in over the past several weeks.

Since SWVL listed its shares this March on the Nasdaq through a merger with women-led blank check company Queen’s Gambit Growth Capital, its valuation has dropped from $1.5 billion to $500-$600 million.

SWVL is just another name on the growing list of companies that have been negatively affected by the current global economic downturn. Even though the company hopes to become profitable again next year, it sees the layoff as the only way forward.

“Over the past few weeks, Swvl has been hit like others across the globe with changes to its financial realities. While change is often unexpected, we believe that any attempt to resist it instead of adapting to it will prove futile,” says SWVL CEO Mostafa Kandil. “Today, with the current global economic downturn, as much as we did everything we could to put people first, we now know that we are not able to keep everyone unimpacted.”

Despite the major setback, SWVL is determined to keep developing its proprietary technology stack and building on its recent acquisitions, which include TaaS and SaaS businesses Argentina’s Viapool, Turkey’s Volt Lines, Spain’s Shotl, and Germany’s door2door.

Also Read: How To Find Remote-Only Tech Jobs In 2023

The announcement of the layoff didn’t mention how the decision would affect SWVL’s planned expansion to Colombia, Mexico, South Africa, and the United States. Currently, SWVL operates in Argentina, Egypt, Germany, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, and the UAE.

Other technology-enabled companies that have recently announced layoffs include online payment and checkout platform Bolt, German on-demand grocery delivery company Gorillas, and Swedish fintech provider of online financial services Klarna.

News

ABB E-mobility Delivers Its Millionth EV Charger

Continued growth has been facilitated by doubling production capacity after the launch of the company’s new DC fast charger facility in Valdarno, Italy.

Published

15 hours ago

January 31, 2023

Nour Nasir

abb e-mobility delivers its millionth ev charger

ABB

ABB is a leader in electrification and automation solutions and has just announced the delivery of its millionth electric vehicle charger — the latest milestone in the company’s ongoing mission to create an emission-free future using smart and reliable EV charging solutions.

ABB currently boasts a presence in over 85 markets. After the launch of the company’s new $30 million, 16,000 squared meter production facility in Valdarno, Italy, production capacity has doubled over the last two years. The cutting-edge manufacturing plant recently set a new benchmark for the EV sector, producing a fast charger unit every 20 minutes, thanks to the high-tech factory’s seven simultaneous production lines.

abb e-mobility ev charger factory

“While our continual investment in research and development shows our ongoing commitment to enhance the field of e-mobility, the global delivery of these solutions at scale is integral to the realization of our goals. I want to thank our customers globally for their continued collaboration in hitting this one millionth charger milestone. I look forward to the millions yet to come, and to the cleaner, greener world they will help create,” says Frank Mühlon, ABB E-mobility CEO.

In the United Arab Emirates, ABB has installed over 80 fast and high-power DC charging stations, making it one of the largest projects from a single brand in the region. The biggest station is in Yas, Abu Dhabi, and offers 20 DC fast and high-power chargers for owners of emissions-free vehicles.

Also Read: Best Video Streaming Services In The Middle East

“We are proud that ABB chargers are today powering electric vehicles across strategic locations in the country, including the sites of the Dubai Utility provider, DEWA, and Abu Dhabi National Oil Company. Most of the car manufacturers and dealers in the UAE have ABB chargers in their showrooms and as well as car parking areas. We are confident ABB’s technical know-how, products, and research in the field of E-Mobility will continue to support the decision-makers in the Middle East to drive the transition to an emission-free future,” says Ahmed Abdu, E-mobility division lead, MENA region.

In addition to its Italian facility, ABB E-mobility has continued its global expansion. Earlier this month, the company announced a new United States facility that will eventually turn out over 10,000 chargers per year for the public sector, providing power to school buses and other fleets. As well as expansion into the USA, ABB E-mobility’s stake in Chinese charging provider, Chargedot, opens up another lucrative market for the EV charging giant.