Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
Electric truck maker Nikola has seen two more executives depart as it continues to delay reporting its fourth-quarter 2024 sales figures. The company has not commented on the matter, but insiders said last week that Nikola is exploring strategic options, including a potential sale or partnerships.
Jaime Ulloa, who joined Nikola in September 2021 as a plant director, and Nick Ioppolo, who started in late 2022 as head of battery operations, have both left their roles as global head of manufacturing and quality at Nikola’s Arizona plant.
According to their LinkedIn profiles, Ulloa updated his employment status to “Semi-Retired.” Ioppolo, meanwhile, has joined AmSafe Aviation as vice president of operations.
Last week, Jorg Wimbert, Nikola’s country chief for Canada, also announced his departure after four years with the company. Wimbert has since activated the “Open to Work” badge on LinkedIn, suggesting his exit may not have been voluntary.
It remains unclear whether these departures were part of a broader round of layoffs or voluntary resignations. The latest layoffs at Nikola occurred in November, affecting approximately 135 employees, or 15% of its workforce. This followed a 23% workforce reduction at its Arizona facility less than 18 months earlier.
Bloomberg reported last week that Nikola is evaluating several financial options to avoid bankruptcy, including selling parts of the business, forming partnerships, or securing additional funding.
The company’s stock hit a record low of $0.76 last week, falling more than 30% on Thursday. As of the time of writing, Nikola shares are gaining 0.30%, trading at $0.92.
The company’s CFO Tom Okray said last October that the company was “working right now to try to raise the necessary capital to give us the runway to go much further into 2025.” Nikola ended the third quarter of 2024 with approximately $198 million in unrestricted cash.
Although the company did not answer any media questions on Thursday, it went to X to celebrate the sale of three FCEV trucks via one of its dealer partners.
“Nikola is proud to see three of our hydrogen fuel cells out on the roads with Reeya Enterprises through our dealer, Ethero Truck + Energy,” the company wrote on social media.
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