With just $121M in the bank, Fisker suspends production

To raise money, electric vehicle startup Fisker has decided to halt production of its Ocean SUV for a period of six weeks.

In a regulatory statement made on Monday morning, the company stated that as of March 15th, it only had $121 million in cash and cash equivalents, of which $32 million was restricted or not readily accessible. In addition, Fisker stated on Monday that it has $182 million in accounts payable outstanding and that there is “substantial doubt” about its ability to sustain operations without obtaining additional funding. This comes after the company announced in February that it would probably issue a warning of this kind.

The firm, which went public in 2020 after merging with a special purpose acquisition company, is facing certain concerning circumstances at the time of the filing. In mid-2023, Fisker began distributing the Ocean SUV in the United States and Europe; however, as TechCrunch recently reported, the launch has been beset by issues with the software and poor customer support. The Ocean is being looked into by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for rollaway and braking difficulties. In February, Fisker declared that the company would be laying off 200 employees, or 15% of its workforce.

By the end of 2023, Fisker had exported about 5,000 of the 10,000 vehicles that Magna Steyr, its contract manufacturer, had constructed. According to a statement released by the company on Monday, it delivered 1,300 cars in January and February and currently has about 5,000 automobiles in stock in the US and Europe.

Although at least one of the startup's initial dozen or so dealer partners has already left, the company is currently attempting to shift away from a direct sales approach and toward dealer partnerships. It has enlisted restructuring advisors to assess a possible bankruptcy case, according to a Wall Street Journal story from last week.