Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
EV truck maker Nikola is considering “all alternatives” for sourcing components amid concerns over potential tariffs under the incoming Trump administration, the company’s Global Head of Sales, Ryan Clayton, said.
Clayton, who joined the truck maker in early 2023, spoke earlier this week at FreightWaves’ F3: Future of Freight Festival, where he commented on the possible tariffs on imported goods. During his campaign, Donald Trump promised to implement a 60% tariff on imports from China and a 10% tariff on products from other countries.
At present, 60% of the components in the company’s trucks are sourced from North America, but the company is seeking to raise this figure to 80%, as initially reported by Freightwaves.
Nikola said last week it has produced its 300th hydrogen-powered truck at its Coolidge, Arizona, manufacturing plant. In the first three quarters of the year, the EV maker sold 200 hydrogen fuel cell trucks.
Commenting on the fuel-cell electric vehicle (FCEV) industry, the executive said, “That’s going to take a tremendous push, not just from Nikola or HYLA [the company’s hydrogen supply chain brand]. It’s going to take an ecosystem coming together, which we’re seeing.”
Nikola shares hit a new all-time low on Wednesday at $1.89 a few days after the company announced a recall of 72 of its 2022-2023 battery electric (BEV) trucks due to a defect in the instrument cluster display.
In the third quarter earnings call, Nikola‘s management said it had redelivered 78 BEV trucks to dealers and fleet customers citing “overwhelmingly positive feedback” after a previous major recall that forced the company to fix all its trucks last year.
Last week, the company announced amendments to its financing structure in a new U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The changes, detailed in Nikola’s Fourth Supplemental Indenture and First Supplemental Indenture filings, allow holders of the June 2022 and June 2023 convertible notes to convert their debt at a discounted rate of $3.116 per share, contingent on the company raising at least $65 million in gross proceeds from stock sales.
On the last day of October, amid the release of the third quarter financial results, the EV startup reaffirmed its volume guidance of 300-350 hydrogen powered trucks by year-end indicating that it expects to produce between 100 and 150 vehicles this quarter.
Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
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