While KTM AG announced it had big plans for the future, with a rebooting process laid out a few weeks ago, it is not going as smoothly as hoped. In the days leading up to a crucial vote on the company’s future, the production line has shut down again as the company does not have the funding it needs.

This news comes out of European media outlets, with GPOne reporting that the issue comes with supply chain problems. KTM does not make all the components for its bikes in-house; many parts come from third-party manufacturers like Brembo. GPOne reports there is currently a spending freeze that prohibits the factory from buying such components, and that’s why production is stopped. If they can’t make the components themselves, they can’t finish building the bikes.

While we see no PR on Pierer Mobility’s website confirming this news, it should not come as a shock. Months ago, we knew that some of KTM’s suppliers were actually forced into their own dire financial situations due to KTM’s money problems. Large suppliers like electronics manufacturers or tire factories probably can handle these situations, but would want assurances they’d be paid for any deliveries. Smaller, local factories are much more impacted, and may not be able to stay in business due to KTM’s late payments destroying their own finances.

KTM only started partial production in March, with employees on a 30-hour workweek. Photo: Filippo Carlot / Shutterstock.com

Now, GPOne says KTM did indeed start production mid-March, as planned, but that they had to shut the Austrian factory down after making only 4,200 bikes. Considering the plan was to build 230,000 motorcycles this year, they’ve got a lot of catching up to do.

This is bad news, but it only sits as background to even more potentially significant news. While Bajaj (KTM’s largest minority owner, by far) contributed the €150M needed to resume production, KTM AG is still short hundreds of millions of euros. When leadership announced its restructuring plan in February, much of that plan hinged on KTM AG repaying its creditors to the tune of €550M by late May. It does not appear that, at this point, the money has been secured; indeed, the company’s early-April press release indicated half of KTM AG’s share capital had been lost. In other words—investors’ shares were losing their value drastically, and the company needed to raise new money. There will be a general meeting on April 25 (tomorrow) to discuss how this is all worked out, especially as to whether KTM needs funds beyond Bajaj’s €150M (with another €50M also potentially incoming from Bajaj).

Indian motor manufacturer Bajaj appears to be the party most willing to bankroll KTM AG’s resurrection. Photo: T. Schneider / Shutterstock.com

So. This story isn’t even over, and even the start of the story isn’t over. In months to come, it seems almost certain that KTM will no longer be under Austrian control, and it also seems likely much of production will be shifted out of Mattighofen. Bajaj is already building much of KTM’s lineup in India, and if it gains more control in the company, it seems likely more production will shift there as well.

As for you, the consumer: The good news is that there is plenty of leftover KTM/Husqvarna/GasGas inventory from 2024, so even if you can’t buy a new 2025 machine, you will have no trouble finding a new set of wheels this year. Ever since the company started really warning of financial issues in fall of 2024, we’ve heard questions about its future. Without a crystal ball, we can’t tell you anything about future parts supply, factory support or anything else. From our experiences with staff in North America, most of them probably can’t tell you much either. Plan your purchase accordingly, but from what I’ve seen personally, there are some great deals out there in KTM-Land right now.