Nissan, Fisker in advanced talks on investment, partnership-sources
01/03/2024 20:17
(Adds share price in paragraph 6, details, background in
paragraphs 7-)
By Abhirup Roy and Norihiko Shirouzu
March 1 (Reuters) - Nissan 7201.T is in advanced talks
to invest in electric vehicle maker Fisker FSR.N in a deal
that could provide the Japanese automaker with access to an
electric pickup truck while giving the struggling startup a
financial lifeline, according to two people familiar with the
negotiations.
The deal could close this month, said the sources, who asked
not to be identified because the talks are ongoing and have not
been finalized.
Terms being discussed include Nissan investing more than
$400 million in Fisker's truck platform and building Fisker's
planned Alaska pickup starting in 2026 at one of its U.S.
assembly plants, one of the sources said. Nissan would build its
own electric pickup on the same platform, the source said.
Nissan has U.S. assembly plants in Mississippi and Tennessee.
Fisker said on Thursday, when it announced it might not be
able to continue as a going concern and would cut 15% of its
workforce, that it was in talks with a large automaker for a
potential investment and joint development partnership. It did
not name the automaker.
A Fisker spokesman said the company does not comment on
speculation, while Nissan officials were not immediately
available to comment.
Fisker shares had been down about 45% before the Reuters
report but pared those losses and were trading down about 25%
with a market capitalization of more than $295 million.
The term sheet is ready and the deal is going through
due diligence, one of the sources said.
Nissan was an EV pioneer with its fully battery powered Leaf
hatchback in 2010 but has since struggled in the face of nimbler
new entrants. A deal with Fisker would help it move into the
growing U.S. electric pickup market.
Nissan's talks with Fisker comes in the wake of the former's
“rebalanced” relationship with its long-time alliance partner
Renault RENA.PA .
Last year, Nissan and Renault finalised terms of a
restructured alliance after months of negotiations. They aim to
have cross-shareholdings of 15% as part of the deal.
The more limited alliance removes certain restrictions and
has opened the door for Nissan to develop growth plans in areas
such as EVs and software independent of Renault, said one of the
sources, who is familiar with Nissan's thinking.
The Yokohama-headquartered automaker is scouring “many, many
opportunities,” the person said.
For Fisker, the deal might be the lifeline it needs to
survive at a time when aggressive price cuts globally by EV
leaders Tesla TSLA.O and BYD 002594.SZ are pressuring the
industry, especially for startups like Fisker.
Fisker has struggled to sell its flagship Ocean electric SUV
after high interest rates led to a slowdown in demand. It said
current financial resources were "insufficient" to cover the
next 12 months and without additional financing it might be
forced to cut production, decrease investments, scale back
operations and slash more jobs.
Fisker also said Thursday it was in talks with a debt holder
about a potential investment. Fisker said it aims to deliver
between 20,000 and 22,000 Ocean vehicles in 2024.
Fisker CEO Henrik Fisker previously told Reuters that the
company was in talks with five automakers about a partnership to
secure additional production capacity for its vehicles. On
Thursday, he said talks had narrowed to one automaker and a deal
would include joint development of one or more EV platforms, and
North America manufacturing.
Fisker unveiled the Alaska pickup truck last year with a
price tag of just over $45,000 and said it was slated for
production early next year. The Alaska platform is an extended
version of the Ocean one. It and any related vehicle from Nissan
would compete in a segment that includes the Ford F.N F-150
Lightning, GM's GM.N Chevrolet Silverado electric truck,
Rivian's RIVN.O R1T and Tesla's Cybertruck.
Henrik Fisker, however, said Thursday the startup would not
spend money on additional projects until a strategic partnership
was in place.
(Reporting by Abhirup Roy in San Francisco and Norihiko
Shirouzu in Austin, Texas, editing by Ben Klayman and Diane
Craft)
((abhirup.roy@thomsonreuters.com; +1 415 941 8665;
@abhiruproy30;))