Fisker's operating arm, the Fisker Group, has filed for bankruptcy, bringing an end to months of attempts to rescue the American electric car maker.
The firm raised concerns over its ability to continue operations in February, having lost $463.6m during the fourth quarter of 2023.
In March, it paused production of its Ocean SUV and halted development of the smaller Pear hatchback while it sought a rescue deal with a “large auto maker”.
Talks with that manufacturer, widely understood to have been Nissan, collapsed. The deal would have given Fisker a $400m cash injection in exchange for access to the platform underpinning its planned Alaska pick-up truck.
Fisker slashed prices for its existing stock of Oceans following the end of talks, as it sought to raise quick cash and prolong its operations.
It will now work to develop a plan to repay its creditors. It has declared assets with a total value of between $500m and $1bn and debts between $100m and $500m as part of its bankruptcy filing.
Fisker said in a statement that it was in “advanced discussions” regarding financing and the sale of its assets.
It added: “We are proud of our achievements, and we have put thousands of Fisker Ocean SUVs in customers’ hands in both North American and Europe. But like other companies in the electric vehicle industry, we have faced various market and macroeconomic headwinds that have impacted our ability to operate efficiently.
“After evaluating all options for our business, we determined that proceeding with a sale of our assets under Chapter 11 is the most viable path forward for the company.”
The pause in production of the Ocean – which is assembled by Magna Steyr in Graz, Austria – remains in effect.
Fisker said it will ensure that it continues to pay employees' wages, “certain customer programmes” and other vendors.
It has yet to clarify what programmes will be preserved, such as roadside assistance or over-the-air software updates.
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Thanks Autocar,
I was just about to buy a Fisker Ocean Extreme, hoping for just such a rescue. However, looking at the user forums (full of dead cars) and the now chances of any ongoing development or support, I have called it off. Such a shame really, but it serves to show how much investment is needed by the car makers before any cars are released to the general public, and why such big sales volumes are needed to recover the outlay one car at a time. Makes me question the strategy of Jaguar going forward on the back of only one electric car development. Surely their future can only lie with their superb mechanical experience tied to the electrical development pockets of a bigger manufacturer.
Like Land Rover perhaps?
No John, I meant much bigger. Someone with big volume development offset. Then yesterdays story emerged about the deepened relationship that JLR have with Chery. QED