ARP E-Vehicles, which manufactures electrical buses from the Pilea brand, was in serious financial trouble. The situation of the company shows that the improvement of the electromobility sector in Poland is inactive dependent on public subsidies and government support. Let us take a closer look at the problems of the IRP E-Vehicles and their importance to the electrical bus marketplace in Poland.
Management problems and deficiency of procurement
ARP E-Vehicles is simply a wholly owned company of the Industrial improvement Agency (ARP). The company was formed after being taken over from Rafako, a boiler maker who is presently in bankruptcy. Since the acquisition, the company has faced many problems, ranging from deficiency of orders, through corporate conflicts, to inefficient management.
In November 2024, Piotr Śladowski resigned as president. In his statement, he stressed that the deficiency of effective management was the consequence of many unresolved corporate, strategical and financial problems. The successor of Trackowski was Alicja Hnatowska, specializing in restructuring. Its task is to carry out a detailed analysis of the situation of the company and to make a plan for its further operation.
Financing and losses
Since the acquisition by the ARP, the company has been recapitalisation 3 times:
- September 2020: PLN 50 million,
- March 2022.: PLN 15 million,
- May 2023: PLN 25 million.
In total, the ARP invested PLN 90 million in the company, but despite this support failed to improve the financial situation. According to the ARP, the erstwhile board of directors failed to meet business goals and the company suffered permanent losses.
Non-liquidity
The financial problems of the IRP E-Vehicles are serious adequate that the company is presently having difficulty even paying basic bills. Company phones have been disconnected due to late payment. This situation, according to anonymous sources, is mainly due to the deficiency of orders.
The company's main customers were to be local governments, which could benefit from subsidies for the acquisition of electrical buses. However, the suspension of funds from the National Recovery Plan (NRP) resulted in the suspension of specified projects.
Releases and future of the company
Due to the deficiency of ARP E-Vehicles orders, she was forced to reduce employment. The number of employees fell from 100 to 50. The company is presently awaiting the decision of the main board of the IDA to proceed financing the project.
According to Natalia Barcz of the Marketing Department of the ARP E-Vehicles, it is worth continuing to finance, as Pilea buses consist of 60% of Polish elements, which contributes to supporting the local economy.
Market conclusions and perspectives
The case of ARP E-Vehicles shows that the improvement of electromobility in Poland is dependent on public subsidies. electrical buses, despite their advantages, are almost twice as costly as their exhaust equivalents, which limits their attractiveness to local governments without additional financial support.
A key component for the future of the marketplace will be the unlocking of funds from KPO and the improvement of effective business models that will let the sector to make on a sustainable basis without the request for permanent state funding. Otherwise, projects specified as IRP E-Vehicles will stay an example of unused opportunities and inefficient management of public funds.
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