The former light bulb giant Osram and the world's second largest automotive supplier Continental are going their separate ways. Their joint company is likely to be dissolved and the employees should be able to return to their respective parent companies. That is at least "the declared intention".
The automotive suppliers Continental and Osram have to end their cooperation in lighting technology due to the corona and industry crisis. The joint venture with headquarters in Munich, which was founded in 2018 and specializes in LED headlights, is to be dissolved, both companies announced. The separation had already become apparent in the summer. Concrete talks would now be held to dissolve the joint venture, explained Conti. They should be completed by the end of the year. Continental and Osram have so far each held half.
The introduced areas with 1500 employees at 14 locations are to return to the company. It is not yet possible to say exactly where the jobs will be located in both parent companies, said a Conti spokeswoman: "We are now entering into negotiations." Overall, the Dax company from Hanover is pursuing a tough austerity course against the background of the collapse in demand during the pandemic and the switch to new drive technologies and software. Regarding lighting technology in the joint venture, it said that projects agreed with customers would continue. Osram emphasized that no staff cuts were planned in connection with the dissolution: "The declared intention is to return people to the company."
The negotiations should be finished by Christmas. The supervisory boards still have to give their final approval. With this step, Continental and Osram reacted to the difficult market situation that had arisen due to weak global car production and the virus crisis, according to the reasoning. The former expectations of cooperation could no longer be maintained.
At the beginning of July, Conti announced that both companies were talking about the future of their joint activities. There was also speculation about a sale. The majority of Osram is now owned by the Austrian sensor specialist AMS. Continental – the world's second largest automotive supplier after Bosch – is converting its structures in the direction of electronics, sensors, electromobility and software. Light and LED technology are also regarded as future technologies in the industry, but the focus of the Hanoverians in the future will primarily be on IT systems and networking. The classic drive division will also soon be spun off into an independent company.
In the Osrams case, there have recently been rumors of a possible break-up because AMS is only said to be interested in parts of the company. The lighting technology manufacturer, formerly also known for its light bulbs, posted high losses in the second quarter, but things looked much better at AMS. The Austrians owe their good numbers primarily to their business as a supplier to the smartphone industry. At Osram, the auto division plays a bigger role and was hit particularly hard by Corona. In the joint venture with Continental, AMS boss Alexander Everke had recently seen no "strategic logic".
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