Calisen to axe 250 jobs in Lowri Beck restructure

Calisen said it was cutting 250 jobs as part of a restructuring of its Lowri Beck business unit as it dealt with a halt to smart meter installations during the coronavirus lockdown.

The London-listed firm bought Lowri Beck last August to enable it to provide meter installation services to the growing independent energy supplier segment. Calisen said a structural changes after a post-takeover review would now be accelerated due to the pandemic.

It said the plans were expected to result in Lowri Beck achieving at least break-even at a core earnings level in the 2021 fiscal year, and making a positive contribution to the group in the medium term.

A restructuring reserve of around £4m would be recorded in the group's accounts for the half-year to June 30.

“Since the new Lowri Beck leadership team was put in place at the start of the year, we have focused on identifying the best path forward for the business to return to profitability while preserving as many jobs as possible,” said chief executive officer Bert Pijls.

“The impact of the pandemic has accelerated our thinking as our meter installations have been paused over the last few months, however, the structural challenges to the business have existed for some time.

“It has become clear that there are areas in which we lack critical mass, so we must become leaner and more efficient to ensure that the business is sustainable in the longer term.”