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Electric Truck-Maker Nikola Falls Into Bankruptcy Joining a Procession of Failed EV Startups

posted by janrinok on Sunday February 23 2025, @12:55PM   Printer-friendly
from the tow-job dept.

fliptop writes:

Electric vehicle startup Nikola Corp. has announced it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy:

Nikola now joins a line of EV startups that fell into bankruptcy over the past year. While the Biden-Harris administration went full-speed ahead with a vision of EVs replacing gas-powered vehicles, electric-vehicle production has become a bad bet for the companies that jumped into the vision head-first. Consumers just never got on board with the plan.

With Trump planning to end federal EV mandates and legislation seeking to stop tax credits for the purchase of new EVs, the list of failed EV startups might continue to grow.

[...] The company went public in 2020, according to Bloomberg, through a deal with a special-purpose acquisition company. Nikola's stock went up after the transaction was closed, but shortly after, Bloomberg revealed its founder, Trevor Milton, had overstated the capability of the company's debut truck. He was later convicted on fraud charges.

"Like other companies in the electric vehicle industry, we have faced various market and macroeconomic factors that have impacted our ability to operate," Nikola president and CEO Steve Girsky said in a recent statement on the company's bankruptcy filing.

Previously:

Original Submission

 
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  • (Score: 2) by corey on Sunday February 23 2025, @08:57PM (1 child)

    by corey (2202) on Sunday February 23 2025, @08:57PM (#1394083)

    Meanwhile, the Chinese govt are subsidising the automakers there to the hilter. Here in Australia, each week it seems there’s a new Chinese automaker hitting our shores and the market is becoming flooded with Chinese EVs. Latest is Xpeng. All the Chinese EVs are competing hard on price and EV prices have been dropping.

    Sad to hear about Nikola.

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday February 24 2025, @01:21AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday February 24 2025, @01:21AM (#1394105)
    If they're oversubsidized then it actually makes sense to buy them since you're making the Chinese government poorer so they can't do other nastier stuff as easily. 🤣

    Seriously though, I thought lots of people (esp those from the US) believe that having the Government involved in stuff or throwing money at stuff makes things worse not better?

    Meanwhile the DOGE is busy dismantling US gov and related stuff...