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Nikola Corporation

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Nikola Corporation
FormerlyNikola Motor Company (2014-2020) (now name of subsidiary of [clarification needed])
Company typePublic
Nasdaq: NKLA
IndustryZero emissions vehicle design and manufacturing
Founded2014; 10 years ago (2014)
Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.
FounderTrevor Milton
Headquarters
Phoenix, Arizona
,
U.S.
Key people
Trevor Milton (founder, Executive Chairman)
Mark Russell (President, CEO)
ProductsNikola One, Nikola Two, Nikola Tre, Nikola Badger
SubsidiariesNikola Motor Company
Nikola Powersports
Nikola Energy Company
Websitenikolamotor.com

Nikola Corporation is an American zero emissions vehicle production company based in Phoenix, Arizona, where it has its research and development operations and corporate offices.[1] The company is named after inventor Nikola Tesla.[2]

History

Nikola was founded by Trevor Milton[3] in 2014[4] in Salt Lake City, Utah.[5][6] In late November 2018, it announced plans for a Nikola World event for April 16–17, 2019, in nearby Scottsdale, Arizona. The two-day midweek event was to have included a Public Demo Day to show off the Nikola Two truck and the Nikola NZT UTV.[7][8][needs update]

In March 2019, Nikola acquired a 389-acre parcel in Coolidge, Arizona, for US$23 million, with future state and local tax breaks. Nikola said in 2019 that they expected the truck factory to start construction in 2020, start building trucks in 2021, and be able to build 35–50,000 trucks per year by 2023.[9]

In March 2020, Nikola announced its plans to merge with VectoIQ[10] Acquisition Corporation[11] (ticker VTIQ) a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company run by former General Motors Co. executive Steve Girsky. This resulted in the combined company being listed on the NASDAQ exchange with the NKLA ticker symbol.[12] Nikola’s stock began trading on June 4, 2020, a day after the merger was completed. By June 9, the shares had more than doubled since they began trading, as investors continued to bet on the growth potential of electric transportation. Nikola executive chairman Trevor Milton tweeted in early June that the company would begin taking reservations for the pickup truck, the Badger, on June 29.[13][needs update]

The company was valued at around $13 billion in early August 2020, compared to its revenue in the first six months of 2020 of $80,000 ($36,000 of which was attributed to installation of solar facilities for CEO Milton).[14]

Concepts and early-designs

Nikola has publicly announced a number of zero emissions vehicle design concepts since 2014, and unveiled a few concept vehicles that the company aims to develop to the public. None of the vehicles appear to be in production, or near production, as of mid-2020.

Nikola NZT

In 2016, a prototype concept, the Nikola NZT, formerly[when?] referred to as the Nikola Zero,[15] was unveiled as a utility task vehicle (UTV) with 72 or 107 kWh battery.[16][17][18] The concept was stated to have 555 hp (414 kW) total, provided by a motor at each wheel, weigh 3,500 lb (1,600 kg), and use the same 14.5 in (370 mm) clearance suspension as the Ford Raptor.[19] Sometime before the end of 2016[when?], it was spun-off into a powersports product, in the Nikola Powersports division.[20][needs update]

Nikola One

In 2016, the company unveiled a high-level design of a hydrogen-fueled electric Class 8 truck called the Nikola One, aimed then to be in production in 2020. The Nikola One design includes a 320 kWh EV battery supplying 6 traction electric motors—one for each wheel—with a combined software-limited 1,000 hp (750 kW) and 2,000 lb⋅ft (2,700 N⋅m) of torque[21] – nearly 86,000 lb⋅ft (117,000 N⋅m) after gear reduction – inspired by electric locomotives.[22] This is sufficient for keeping a speed of 65 mph (105 km/h) with a full load of 80,000 pounds (36 tonnes) on a 6% grade.[18] The energy source is 300 kW[17] hydrogen fuel cells[23][24][25] consuming 4.6 kg (10 lb) H2 per 100 km (62 mi) from tanks with 100 kg (220 lb) of hydrogen, giving a range of 1,200 mi (1,900 km). Consumption is equivalent to 15.4 mpg of diesel.[18] The truck has regenerative brakes to supplement the traditional disc brakes, decreasing stopping distance and fuel usage.[22] The hydrogen version was unveiled in December 2016 and was expected to be available by 2019.[17][21][26] The company said[when?] that in some markets, compressed natural gas may be used to power an on-board gas turbine generator rather than hydrogen fuel cells.[23]

As of 2016, the first 5,000 trucks were slated to be built by Fitzgerald in Byrdstown, Tennessee.[needs update] Fitzgerald is known for production of "glider trucks", which are built without engines.[17]

In May 2018, Nikola Motor Company filed a lawsuit against Tesla, Inc. seeking US$2 billion in damages alleging that the Tesla Semi infringes on several patents Nikola has been granted on the design of the Nikola One. Tesla responded that the lawsuit is without merit.[27][needs update]

In May 2018, Anheuser-Busch placed a putative order for up to 800 of the conceptual hydrogen-powered truck versions and Nikola claimed then that the trucks would start being delivered in 2020.[28][needs update]

Nikola Two

The company has[when?] announced plans to build a hydrogen-powered truck called the Nikola Two,[26] with power and range estimates similar to those of the Nikola One, but without the sleeping compartment found in Nikola One.[citation needed]

Nikola Tre

In November 2019, the company unveiled the Nikola Tre electric truck, a rebadged version of the Iveco S-Way[29] that would be aimed the European market. The Tre will also be targeted for the Australian and Asian markets.[30] Nikola Motor Company says the Tre will have 500 to 1,000 horsepower and a range of 500 to 1,200 kilometers (310 to 745 miles).[31] CEO Trevor Milton stated that production is set to begin at the same time as the US truck versions, which is 2022–2023.[32]

Nikola Reckless

The Nikola Reckless is a concept vehicle projected to be a military grade fully-electric tactical off-highway vehicle.[33][non-primary source needed]

Nikola Badger

The Nikola Badger is a hybrid hydrogen/electric pickup truck concept with a reported range of 600 miles. It was announced[how?] in June 2020.[citation needed]

Nikola Refuse

On August 10th, 2020 the Company announced the introduction of the Nikola Refuse hauler trick based on the Tre to serve the waste management industry along with a large order of up to 5000 trucks. The truck chassis and body will be provided directly to Republic Services from the Nikola factory

The electric platform is expected to offer up to 150 miles and 1,200 cans on a single charge

Zero-emission trucks expected to outperform diesel or natural gas options in horsepower and torque

Controversy

The founder, Trevor Milton, has alleged that those who are short selling Nikola stocks are Tesla fans, who are alleged not to be Nikola shareholders but "anti-Nikola or paid attack accounts".[34]

  • Nikola Two
    Nikola Two
  • Nikola Tre
    Nikola Tre
  • Nikola Tre, side view
    Nikola Tre, side view
  • Nikola Reckless
    Nikola Reckless
  • Nikola Reckless, side view
    Nikola Reckless, side view

See also

References

  1. ^ Ringle, Hayley (October 19, 2018). "Behind the deal: How Nikola Motor steered its trucking technology to Arizona". Phoenix Business Journal. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
  2. ^ Cao, Sissi (November 23, 2019). "Elon Musk Isn't the Only Electric Futurist Who Wants to Rectify Nikola Tesla's Legacy". Observer. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
  3. ^ "Forbes profile: Trevor Milton". Forbes.
  4. ^ Hsu, Tiffany (December 1, 2016). "Nikola One Hydrogen Fuel Cell Electric Semi-Truck Debuts". Trucks.com. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
  5. ^ Hall-Geisler, Kristen. "Nikola Motor Company unveils its electric (mostly) truck". TechCrunch. Retrieved May 20, 2018.
  6. ^ "Company Overview of Nikola Motor Company". Bloomberg. Retrieved May 20, 2018.
  7. ^ "Nikola Corp | Rsvps | Nikola World Public". Nikola Motor Company. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
  8. ^ "Nikola World Registration Opens at 9 a.m. on Dec. 3". November 30, 2018. Archived from the original on January 8, 2019.
  9. ^ O'Dell, John (March 25, 2019). "Nikola Closes Land Deal for Arizona Truck Plant". Trucks.com. Retrieved April 4, 2019.
  10. ^ Corporation, Nikola. "Nikola and VectoIQ Acquisition Corp. Announce Closing of Business Combination". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  11. ^ "VectoIQ | Home | Experts for the Future of Mobility | New York". vectoiq. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
  12. ^ "Done Deal: VectoIQ's Merger With Nikola Motor Has Closed". The Motley Fool. June 3, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
  13. ^ Foldy, Ben (June 9, 2020). "Electric-Truck Startup Nikola Bolts Past Ford in Market Value". wsj.com. Wall Street Journal. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
  14. ^ Stevens, Pippa (August 5, 2020). "Nikola's entire quarterly revenue of $36,000 was from solar installation for the executive chairman". CNBC. Retrieved August 6, 2020.
  15. ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=we4Kq9T97Jw
  16. ^ "Nikola Zero UTV Driving Footage And Launch Videos". Retrieved November 6, 2016.
  17. ^ a b c d "Nikola One Hydrogen Fuel Cell Electric Semi-Truck Debuts". Trucks.com. December 1, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
  18. ^ a b c "Dette er bilen som skal ta tungtransporten vekk fra diesel". Teknisk Ukeblad (in Norwegian). December 2, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
  19. ^ Lambert, Fred (November 21, 2017). "We tested an insane electric UTV with more energy capacity than even the most powerful Tesla". Electrek.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  20. ^ "Nikola Powersports". 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  21. ^ a b "Nikola One, America's first hydrogen-powered semi, is straight outta the future". Roadshow. CBS Interactive. December 2, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
  22. ^ a b Inside the Nikola One hydrogen-electric semi-truck, at 4 min on YouTube.
  23. ^ a b Lambert, Fred. "Nikola Motor claims it received over 7,000 pre-orders worth over $2.3 billion for its electric truck". Electrek. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
  24. ^ Lambert, Fred. "Nikola Motor does a 180°, scraps plans for battery-powered truck, turns to hydrogen". Electrek. Retrieved August 31, 2016.
  25. ^ "Nikola CEO Milton Explains Hydrogen Fuel Cell Truck Strategy". Trucks.com. December 2, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
  26. ^ a b Nikola Unveils the Nikola One and announces the Nikola Two - 42 min video on YouTube.
  27. ^ O'Kane, Sean (May 1, 2018). "Tesla sued for $2 billion by hydrogen truck startup over alleged patent infringement". The Verge. Retrieved May 2, 2018.
  28. ^ "Anheuser-Busch orders hundreds of hydrogen trucks from zero-emission startup Nikola". The Verge. May 3, 2018.
  29. ^ "Nikola & Iveco Partner To Bring The Battery Electric Nikola TRE To The EU". CleanTechnica. December 3, 2019. Retrieved December 3, 2019.
  30. ^ Browne, Ryan (November 6, 2018). "Tesla rival Nikola Motor unveils hydrogen-powered truck for Europe". CNBC. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  31. ^ Ballaban, Michael (November 5, 2018). "The Nikola Tre Is the Not-Tesla Hydrogen Semi that Wants to Take On Europe". Jalopnik. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  32. ^ Stumpf, Rob (November 6, 2018). "Nikola Tre Is a Stylish, Hydrogen-Powered Semi Truck Destined for Europe". The Drive. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
  33. ^ "Nikola Corp | Reckless". Nikola Motor Company. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
  34. ^ Kotoky, Anurag (July 3, 2020). "Nikola Founder Channels Elon Musk in Lashing Out at Naysayer Tweets". Bloomberg. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
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