Financial collapse threatens: Is Nissan joining Fisker?

American electric car manufacturer Fisker is in transition: According to its own statements, the Los Angeles company has “serious doubts” about its continued existence without new sources of funding. The start-up’s dire financial situation has already led to difficult decisions: around 15 percent of the workforce has to be made redundant, with sales staff particularly affected. With a net loss of $463 million on revenue of $200 million in the fourth quarter, Fisker’s challenges are clear.

Things looked bleak for Fisker stock on Friday. It fell 46 percent to 0.32 cents. In the last 52 weeks, the American company lost a lot of value. Pre-market, shares were trading at 0.51 cents (as of 10:40 am CET).

Fisker is looking for solid partnerships and investments

In this emergency, management under the leadership of founder and CEO Henrik Fisker is looking for ways to save lives. As the company announced, Henrik Fisker is in talks with the major automaker. Prospective partnerships include potential investment and joint development of vehicles. According to Fisker, this partnership could stabilize the company in an important phase and expand the portfolio. However, current investment for future projects remains stagnant at this time.

According to information from Reuters, the main car manufacturer is Nissan. This would give Nissan access to an electric pickup truck. At the same time, Fisker could benefit greatly financially. According to rumors, Nissan may invest more than 400 million dollars in the Fisker truck platform and release a pickup truck based on this platform in the USA from 2026.

Reduced production forecast

The flagship Fisker Ocean model, produced by contract manufacturer Magna in Austria, is expected to be produced in quantities of 20,000 to 22,000 this year. However, this number is below the expectations of analysts. Henrik Fisker insisted that they have a window of six months to rectify the situation – a clear sign that the company’s future is bleak.

The Ocean midsize SUV is currently Fisker’s flagship model, but the company is already planning to expand the model line. PEAR is a compact SUV designed to conquer the mass market. More models, including a pickup called Alaska, are planned, which is where Nissan’s interest comes in. This potential partnership could be strengthened this month and would be a mutually beneficial strategic development.

The electric vehicle industry is changing

The Fisker case highlights the challenges facing electric vehicle startups. Slowing industry-wide sales growth caused by weakening consumer demand is hurting electric car makers like Fisker. Even big names like Swedish supplier Polestar have struggled and are now relying on the support of their Chinese majority shareholder Geely.

Expert Stefan Bratzel from the Automotive Management Center sees an imminent consolidation in the online mobility industry. For “Business Week” he said: “Not everyone will survive. If you will, it’s a natural process of economic selection taking place.”