It has been a rough spring and summer for American Superconductor.
The Devens, MA-based energy tech company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMSC]]) said today it has cut 30 percent of its workforce, about 150 positions, since March 31 and expects to employ nearly 600 people worldwide after the cuts.
The firm also said it expects to submit a plan to the Nasdaq Stock Market by August 16 to regain compliance with the market’s listing rules. American Superconductor is working to restate financial statements from its fiscal year that ended March 31, 2011, and the quarter ending on June 30, 2011, because of unpaid product shipments that were expected to be made to Chinese customers.
Back in April, the company disclosed that its biggest customer, China-based Sinovel Wind Group, “refused to accept contracted shipments” of wind turbine electrical components and spare parts. That development has led to major problems for American Superconductor, including difficulty in closing its intended $265 million acquisition of Finnish power tech firm The Switch Engineering Oy.
In May, American Superconductor went through a CEO transition, with Daniel McGahn (former president and chief operating officer) succeeding founder Gregory Yurek at the helm. And in a regulatory filing today, the company said Charles Stankiewicz, executive vice president of operations and grid segment, and Angelo Santamaria, senior vice president of global manufacturing operations, are leaving the firm this month.
