Nikola Corporation reports second quarter 2023 results

Nikola Corporation, a global leader in zero-emissions transportation and energy supply and infrastructure solutions, via the HYLA brand, today reported financial results and business updates for the quarter ended June 30, 2023.

“Nikola has turned the corner and is well on the way to executing our business plan and achieving profitability,” said Nikola CEO Michael Lohscheller. “We have nearly doubled our unrestricted cash position while also substantially reducing our spending. We continue to drive forward in our mission to decarbonize heavy-duty trucking and ensure Nikola is successful for the long haul.”

“Our management team is highly focused on delivering trucks to customers at scale and making the most of our first mover advantage in the hydrogen refueling ecosystem” Lohscheller continued.

Execution of Strategic Priorities

During the second quarter we made substantial progress on the realignment of resources with our strategic priorities:

• Continued building sales momentum delivering 45 wholesale and 66 retail battery-electric trucks, the best retail quarter to date
• Increased our unrestricted cash position by $107.1 million while substantially reducing our adjusted free cash flow to below our $150 million target for the quarter
• Raised $233.2 million through capital raise and asset monetization, and improved visibility into future capital needs to fully fund the business model
• Closed down battery production operations of Romeo Power, Inc. (“Romeo”) and are establishing a battery pack line in Coolidge for our battery-electric trucks
• Completed the sale of European joint venture to Iveco
• Made substantial progress in the development of the hydrogen refueling ecosystem with partners

Hydrogen Fuel Cell Electric Truck

On July 31, 2023, we officially began serial production of the hydrogen fuel cell electric truck. The first customer deliveries are expected to take place in September. To date, 18 customers have placed orders for over 200 hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks with Nikola and dealers ⁽¹⁾. During the second quarter, the remainder of the 10 gamma trucks were fully built and commissioned. Gamma trucks will be used in final vehicle validation and customer pilot testing.

Battery-Electric Truck

During the second quarter we continued to build sales momentum on the battery-electric trucks, wholesaling 45 to dealers with 66 retail sales. We expect sales momentum to continue building as customers realize the total cost of ownership benefits of zero-emissions trucks and additional government support is introduced to accelerate the transition to zero-emissions.

Energy Infrastructure

Our HYLA team is focused on ensuring there is adequate hydrogen supply to meet truck sales volumes in 2023 and beyond. We continue to move the hydrogen refueling ecosystem forward with well capitalized partners that align with our capital-efficient strategy. Voltera and Nikola are collaborating on the recently announced partnership, and we have begun the station development process for eight (8) initial stations. Our first station in Ontario, California is expected to go into operation by the end of 2023. We have also secured over $50 million in grant funding from various California agencies, reducing the capital costs for hydrogen stations.

On July 19, 2023, we announced Fortescue Future Industries (FFI) acquired the Phoenix Hydrogen Hub project, further validating our capital efficient strategy. We are negotiating an offtake agreement with FFI, which is intended to support hydrogen demand from Nikola truck customers starting in 2025.

In the near term as permanent station infrastructure is built, we are securing adequate fueling solutions to enable trucking operations for early customers. We expect to deploy nine (9) hydrogen mobile fuelers at several locations in California by the end of 2023 to support zero-emissions trucking operations.

Coolidge, Arizona Manufacturing Facility

In Coolidge, the Phase 2 assembly expansion has been completed and the new mixed-model line capable of building both battery-electric and hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks has been installed. The current production capacity of the facility is 2,400 trucks / year on three (3) shifts.

Progress continued on the fuel cell power module assembly line. We expect the fuel cell power module assembly line to be completed in Q4 of this year. Fuel cell power modules utilized in hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks in 2023 will be built and shipped to Coolidge by Bosch.

Progress also continued on the battery pack line installation in Coolidge. When we resume battery-electric truck production, the battery packs utilized will be built at our facility in Coolidge.

Second Quarter Financial Highlights

SOURCE: Nikola