The electric truck pioneer Nikola is under pressure. The start-up has been sliding from one crisis to the next for years, and is now apparently considering selling various parts of the company. A total sale also seems possible given the pressing liquidity problems. This is reported by the Bloomberg news agency with reference to insiders. A final decision has not yet been made. The involvement of partners or the procurement of new financing is also being examined. Following the release of the report, Nikola shares fell to a record low. Over the course of the day they lost 28 percent and were still trading at $0.84 at the end of trading. In the past 12 months, the company has lost 95 percent of its value.
The company is struggling with high costs related to ramping up production of its fuel cell electric truck. Nikola boss Stephen Girsky said in October in response to questions about raising capital that the company was “actively talking to many different potential partners,” according to the Reuters news agency.
According to Bloomberg, Nikola’s current financial difficulties are at least partly due to problems with the trucks it has already produced. Accordingly, the company had to recall all 209 electric trucks sold in 2023 and temporarily stop sales after an investigation discovered a defect in the battery packs.
The sale would be the end of a long descent. In 2020 the company went to the stock exchange, a short time later Nikola presented a strategic partnership with General Motors, one of the world’s largest automotive companies. At that time, the start-up was more important on the stock exchange than the traditional car manufacturer ford
. Then the short seller Hindenburg Research published a devastating analysis that cast doubt on key statements made by the company’s founder and then boss, Trevor Milton. The price then collapsed. Milton resigned and had to stand trial on fraud charges.