Nikola Motor raises $100M for fuel cell trucks in a week
Nikola Motor says they raised over 100 million dollars in just one week. The current round of funding for $200 million is ongoing and will be oversubscribed, says CEO Trevor Milton, if the trend continues. The money is to help Nikola launch and scale its two fuel cell trucks in 2020.
Hydrogen truck maker Nikola Motor is on a roll as they announce they collected half of the money they had aimed for in the latest round of funding in just the first week. The 200 million dollar financing round is to run for another three weeks and their early success has led Nikola CEO Trevor Milton to believe, that the offer will be oversubscribed.
The investors’ trust builds on substantial success Nikola Motor had lately. Powerful allies such as Bosch had helped the electric truck startup from the beginning. Their first fuel cell truck Nikola One will utilise the eAxle of Bosch when it launches in 2020/21 (we reported).
Yet, Nikola Motor will need more money for some time. In January they announced their plan to build a new factory close to Phoenix, Arizona. They earmarked no less than a billion dollars with construction to start in 2019 and production to begin two years later.
At the moment the company has a $1.1 billion pre-money valuation.
It is not only investors but clients too that have reserved their trust for Nikola. The company had been taking pre-orders since months. Initially they charged a 1,500 dollar deposit that included a 6-year leasing contract and unlimited hydrogen fueling in the USA. In a show of strength, the money has been returned, while the orders remain standing (we reported).
In addition, Nikola struck their largest deal to date this May when Anheuser-Busch reserved 800 fuel cell trucks from Nikola. The beer magnate wants to convert their entire fleet to zero emission trucks, and had previously ordered 40 Tesla Semi trucks.
While Nikola Motor had looked into battery-electric trucks at the very beginning, they have since switched to hydrogen-powered electric vehicles. They say they will be working with partners on a network of hydrogen-filling stations. By 2028, Nikola is planning on having about 700 hydrogen stations across the USA and Canada to fill their fuel cell trucks.
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