Polestar secures additional $450M of funding

Polestar announced on Friday that it has secured a new loan of up to $450 million.

The company also renewed an existing loan worth 480 million euros (approximately $500 million). This latest funding follows the $800 million in loans Polestar secured last December.

Polestar’s sales fell 15% in 2024, ending the year at just 44,851 units. Without strong revenues to ensure consistent cash flow—critical for EV startups facing high cash burn during production ramp-ups—these loans come at a crucial time. Several EV startups have gone bankrupt while scaling production, most recently Nikola.

To help reverse course, Polestar appointed industry veteran Michael Lohscheller as CEO last fall. Previously, he led Opel and VinFast.

Lohscheller has already lowered prices on some models and delayed niche vehicles like the Polestar 6 sports car to focus on higher-volume models, such as the Polestar 7 small crossover expected around 2027. A Polestar 5 sedan based on a bespoke platform will still launch later this year.

Future models, starting with the Polestar 7, will also move to a single-platform strategy to curb costs and boost efficiencies.

He has also introduced a plan to sell Polestar vehicles through Volvo dealerships, giving the brand access to an established dealer network for the first time. Currently, Polestar sells its vehicles online and through a limited number of company-owned stores, similar to Tesla. Pairing up with Volvo dealerships will enable Polestar to grow its sales footprint from 70 to 130 sites in Europe and from 36 to 57 in North America.