Fisker halts production, warns bankruptcy protection may be needed

Fisker has suspended production of its only model, the Ocean crossover, to save money for a new financing round.

The electric vehicle startup said Monday that the production pause will last six weeks and help "adjust" inventory levels. The company said it will deliver 1,300 Ocean vehicles by 2024, with a current inventory of 4,700. The Ocean will be built by contract manufacturer Magna Steyr at its plant in Austria.

In the same announcement, Fisker said it would raise up to $150 million by selling debt securities (in this case convertible bonds) to existing investors. The company also said it is in ongoing discussions with "major automakers" about investing in Fisker, co-developing one or more EV platforms, and possibly co-producing vehicles in North America.

Reuters reported earlier this month that the major automaker in talks with Fisker is Nissan, according to a source familiar with the matter. According to the sources, Nissan could provide Fisker with an electric truck platform and produce both its own trucks and Fisker trucks at its plants in the U.S. starting around 2026. Fisker previewed its own electric trucks last year with the Alaska Concept. The company recently changed the name of the model it plans to produce to Kayak.

Nissan announced last week that it would consider a partnership with Honda in the areas of EV and software development.

Fisker said in a regulatory filing on Monday that it fell behind on interest payments on its existing convertible bonds by about $8.4 million last week and will use a 30-day grace period to make the payments. The company also warned that it needs "significant additional funds" in the immediate future to continue operations and may need to seek bankruptcy protection if it does not have the necessary funds.

In addition to the Ocean and Kayak, Fisker also has plans for an affordable crossover called the Pair and a luxury convertible called the Ronin. Concepts for both models were unveiled last August, along with the Alaska Truck concept.