Photo: Nikola
Nikola is still managing the bad repercussion of having its founder, Trevor Milton, charged by federal prosecutors. If that was not enough, it also did not have good news to share in its Q2 2021 conference call. The company halved its electric truck delivery estimates for 2021. Although the volumes were not that big, it came as a disappointment to investors.
Instead of 50 to 100 electric trucks, Nikola said it will probably deliver between 25 to 50 units. The company also informed investors that it lost $143 million in the second quarter of the year, which is more than the $116 million it lost in Q2 2020, according to Reuters.
If there were any good news, Nikola said it is building Two prototypes in Ulm and Coolidge. There will be two units of the Two in each location for tests. The Nikola Two is the semi-truck powered by fuel cells that also caused controversy a while ago. Milton presented them as if the company had a working prototype, and that was not the case.
The Nikola Tre – built in a partnership with Iveco – is the vehicle that will be ready for deliveries in 2021. It will be powered solely by batteries at first: fuel cell trucks would emerge in 2023.
It is not clear what happened with one of Nikola’s most interesting objectives: establishing a hydrogen refueling network in the major U.S. highways. These hydrogen stations would use electrolyzers to produce the gas and would benefit from critical PPAs (Power Purchase Agreements) the company would have managed to sign.
Establishing this network without the trucks that will need it obviously makes no sense. At the same time, waiting to sell them to get these stations ready would be capital intensive and challenging to achieve in a short time. If Nikola can stand on its own feet long enough to sell these trucks, it will be enlightening to watch how it solves this dilemma.
If there were any good news, Nikola said it is building Two prototypes in Ulm and Coolidge. There will be two units of the Two in each location for tests. The Nikola Two is the semi-truck powered by fuel cells that also caused controversy a while ago. Milton presented them as if the company had a working prototype, and that was not the case.
The Nikola Tre – built in a partnership with Iveco – is the vehicle that will be ready for deliveries in 2021. It will be powered solely by batteries at first: fuel cell trucks would emerge in 2023.
It is not clear what happened with one of Nikola’s most interesting objectives: establishing a hydrogen refueling network in the major U.S. highways. These hydrogen stations would use electrolyzers to produce the gas and would benefit from critical PPAs (Power Purchase Agreements) the company would have managed to sign.
Establishing this network without the trucks that will need it obviously makes no sense. At the same time, waiting to sell them to get these stations ready would be capital intensive and challenging to achieve in a short time. If Nikola can stand on its own feet long enough to sell these trucks, it will be enlightening to watch how it solves this dilemma.
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