De Vector

Evonik presses ahead with restructuring affecting 3,200 jobs

The German chemicals group is selling business units and closing smaller sites to cut costs.

Evonik will begin a new phase of its restructuring from 2027. The group is sticking to plans under which around 3,200 positions will disappear by the end of 2029, while business units with thousands of employees are sold or merged.

According to Reuters, the second phase of the restructuring will run from 2027 through 2029. Evonik previously announced that around 3,200 jobs would disappear worldwide, including 2,150 in Germany. This is a planned workforce reduction over several years, not a single immediate round of redundancies.

The group wants to divest Oxeno and Syneqt. Together, the companies have around 4,300 employees, according to Reuters. Talks with potential investors are under way for Oxeno; the sale process for Syneqt is due to begin in 2027. Syneqt has around 3,500 employees at sites in Marl and Wesseling.

Sites in Germany are also being concentrated. Earlier this month, Evonik announced that its sites in Hamburg and Bitterfeld would have to close next year. Around fifty people work in Hamburg on products for cosmetics and personal care. In Bitterfeld, around forty people work on the production of chlorosilanes.

According to the company, the activities in Hamburg will largely be brought together at a larger site in Essen. Production in Bitterfeld will likewise be concentrated within the German network. Evonik says the activities concerned will continue, but will be organised at fewer and larger sites.

The company cites weak global growth, international competition and pressure on margins as reasons for the restructuring. Evonik also does not want to automatically refill vacancies created by departures. Other measures include early retirement and voluntary departures with severance packages; the details still have to be worked out with employee representatives.

The restructuring is taking place under interim head Claus Rettig, after chief executive Christian Kullmann stepped down in August because of illness. According to Reuters, Rettig expects Kullmann to return next year. Evonik did not change its outlook for 2026 and says the group expects a good result this year.

The precise impact on employees will depend on the sale of business units, consultations with works councils and how voluntary departures are arranged. This means the figure of 3,200 planned disappearing positions is fixed as a corporate target, but it is not yet clear how each individual job or site will be affected.

Respond to this article

← Back to the edition