What follows is your irregular check in on the state of Nikola, an EV semi startup whose founder got in quite a lot of trouble with the authorities but whose company is still somehow alive and kicking, and still publicly traded. Nikola, the company reported on Wednesday, sold 66 trucks in the second quarter of 2023, which is double the number of trucks that it sold in the first quarter of 2023, which was 33. The company also said it produced 33 trucks in the second quarter of 2023, which was down from the 63 trucks it produced in the first quarter of 2023.
Its CEO sounded an optimistic note in Nikola’s press release:
“It is not easy being a pioneer in the zero-emission Class 8 truck space, but we are witnessing a remarkable surge in momentum,” said Nikola CEO Michael Lohscheller. “We take great pride in our current achievements and the influx of orders coming in for our soon-to-be-produced hydrogen fuel cell electric truck. I believe there has not been a better time to be at Nikola as we move forward, together.”
Reuters, which is a business news service that is normally incredibly sober, interpreted the numbers as, “a positive sign for the startup that has been grappling with a cash crunch and stiff competition.” Reuters also noted that Nikola’s stock had fallen before the market opened, after Nikola disclosed that it was liquidating investments in a company called Romeo Power in which Nikola had announced last year it was investing tens of millions of dollars.
Nikola’s stock rose in price when the market opened on Wednesday, and it currently has a market capitalization of around $1 billion, or a small fraction of what it used to be on paper. Normal things for a normal company that will certainly be around for many decades to come.