Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
Nikola’s chief for the Canadian market said late Thursday he has left the company after spending four years at the EV maker. Earlier in the day, multiple internal sources disclosed that the EV maker is exploring various financial options to avoid bankruptcy, including selling part of its business.
Jorg Wimbert joined Nikola in early 2021 as Head of North American Deal Structuring and Analytics and had been promoted to Head of Canada in March last year.
“As I like to say: “It has been a slice!” My journey with Nikola has come to an end. And what a ride these last 4 years have been…,” the company’s Head of Canada Jorg Wimbert wrote on LinkedIn this Thursday.
The executive did not disclose whether he was part of a new round of layoffs or left voluntarily. However, Wimbert activated on his LinkedIn the profile badge ‘Open to Work,’ hinting that the exit was not voluntary.
The latest round of layoffs took place last November and affected about 135 workers, around 15% of the company’s workforce. Less than 18 months earlier, Nikola had reduced its Arizona workforce by 23%.
The EV maker has removed all its job listings from both its website and LinkedIn.
Citing people familiar with the matter, Bloomberg reported on Thursday that the Phoenix-based startup is exploring various options, including the possibility of a sale, forming partnerships, or raising additional capital.
The company’s shares hit a new record low at $0.76 on Thursday after plummeting more than 30%. As of the time of writing, the stock has recovered part of the losses and is now trading 8% higher at $0.91.
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.
Earlier in the day, Elecktrek‘s editor-in-chief Fred Lambert wrote on X that “the bankruptcy filing is already in the hands of lawyers.” Citing a source, Lambert added that the chief executive Stephen Girsky “is out.”
Nikola has still not reported its production and sales figures from the last quarter. The truck maker’s figures have historically been disclosed within the first four days of each quarter, as seen on January 4, April 4, July 2, and October 2, 2024.
The company sold 88 hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks in the third quarter of 2024, up 22 percent from the 72 units registered between April and June. For the first three quarters of the year, Nikola sold 200 hydrogen fuel cell trucks, and 235 total since the truck went on sale in late 2023.
Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
