Virgin Orbit pauses operations for a week, furloughs nearly entire staff as it seeks funding

Virgin Orbit is furloughing astir each its employees and pausing operations for a week arsenic it looks for a backing lifeline, radical acquainted with the substance told CNBC.

Company executives briefed unit connected the concern successful an all-hands gathering astatine 5 p.m. ET connected Wednesday, according to radical who were successful the meeting. The furlough is unpaid, though employees tin currency successful PTO, with lone a tiny squad continuing to work. Virgin Orbit is besides moving up payroll by a week to Friday.

In the all-hands, institution leaders told employees that they aimed to supply an update connected the furlough and backing concern by adjacent Wednesday oregon Thursday, according to the people, who requested to stay anonymous to sermon interior matters.

Virgin Orbit did not instantly respond to CNBC's requests for comment.

Shares of Virgin Orbit fell 11% successful after-hours trading from its adjacent astatine $1.01 a share. The banal has slid steadily from its debut adjacent $10 a stock successful December 2021.

The rocket-building institution developed a strategy that uses a modified 747 pitchy to nonstop satellites into space, by dropping a rocket from nether the aircraft's helping mid-flight. But the company's past ngo suffered a mid-flight failure, with an contented during the motorboat causing the rocket to not scope orbit and clang into the ocean.

When Virgin Orbit reported 3rd 4th results successful aboriginal November, it disclosed currency connected manus of $71.2 cardinal astatine the extremity of the quarter. In the look of $30.9 cardinal successful revenue, Virgin Orbit reported an adjusted EBITDA nonaccomplishment of $42.9 cardinal for the 3rd 4th arsenic it continued to pain cash.

Since the 4th quarter, the institution has steadily brought successful funds successful the signifier of indebtedness via Richard Branson's Virgin Group. The institution raised $25 cardinal successful an unsecured convertible enactment successful November, earlier raising $20 cardinal and $10 cardinal successful elder secured convertible notes, successful December and February. The notes springiness Branson's genitor institution "first-priority" to Virgin Orbit's assets.