Nikola Corporation has posted its Q1 2024 financial report ahead of a call with investors this morning, and the numbers detail a commercial vehicle developer growing amid setbacks that arose last year. Today’s update mainly focuses on hydrogen as Nikola looks to execute deliveries while making good on issues with its BEV trucks.
It’s been an eventual twelve months for Nikola Corporation ($NKLA). During its Q1 2023 financial report, the American commercial vehicle manufacturer hinted at a weaning down of staff and company spending to optimize hydrogen and BEV truck production.
By Q2 2023, however, Nikola was presented with a significant issue as the Romeo Power battery packs in its BEV trucks started catching fire. The fire was not an isolated incident either; it warranted an investigation from the local fire department amid multiple fires, eventually leading to the automaker’s fourth CEO stepping down while Nikola’s stock tanked.
Nikola had to recall all 209 BEV trucks in operation while it simultaneously worked to expand its lineup of hydrogen trucks. That process is going much more smoothly as Nikola delivered its first HFCEV this past February.
As such, much of Nikola’s Q1 2024 financial report mostly focuses on the progress of its hydrogen fuel cell technology, although there is an update to the BEV recall.
Nikola’s BV truck / Source: Nikola Corporation
Nikola stresses ‘execution’ amid lower Q1 2024 numbers
Based on the development hurdles mentioned above, it should come as little surprise that Nikola Corporation’s Q1 2024 report details a drop in production and revenue. The automaker wholesaler 40 FCEVs to end fleets in the first three months of the year and delivered each one.
Now, through two-quarters of hydrogen truck production, Nikola has sold 75 Tre FCEVs to date. Nikola trucks produced in Q1 2024 (43) are down compared to Q1 2023 (63), but the 40 deliveries are an Improvement, up from 31 trucks year-over-year. Revenue was down in Q1 at $7.5 million compared to $10.7 million in Q1 2023, and adjusted EBITDA was slightly up ($104 million in Q1 2024 compared to $103.7 million a year ago). See below:
Source: Nikola Corporation
Nikola’s focus on hydrogen FCEV deliveries is met by positive growth in the infrastructure to support it, as the company’s HYLA arm is not only on track in its “Hydrogen Highway Plan” but ahead of schedule. The automaker has previously committed to nine additional HYLA refueling stations in California by the end of 2024 but is now expecting to hit that milestone by mid-year and aiming to put 14 hydrogen refueling stations into operation by the end of the year. Nikola president and CEO Steve Girsky spoke:
We continue to move forward rapidly and execute our plans. And please keep that in mind – we are in the execution phase, not the planning or concepting phase. Last quarter, I talked about getting on the field with the first deliveries of our hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks. Today, we are executing plays, competing, and cultivating more green shoots as we expand upon current markets and enter new ones.
As for the Tre BEV trucks, Nikola appears to have put out the fires (literally and figuratively) and has begun reintroducing the trucks into the market. Nikola shared that it has completed the first delivery of its revamped “Tre 2.0” BEV in Q1 2024 and will continue to prioritize returning those trucks to customers and dealers throughout 2024. The automaker is admittedly not out of the woods yet, however. Per the release:
Our ability to sell Nikola’s on-hand inventory, however, will be dependent upon future battery supply; we now expect to opportunistically sell on-hand inventory for revenue in 2025. We’ve also taken this opportunity to ‘future proof’ the BEV 2.0, as it now shares significant software commonality with the battery and operating systems on the FCEV, allowing customers to receive next-generation upgrades seamlessly over-the-air as they are deployed.
Nikola will hold a call with investors this morning to discuss its Q1 2024 numbers, beginning at 7:30 AM PT. You can tune into the live webcast here.
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Danish energy giant Ørsted has canceled plans for the Hornsea 4 offshore wind farm, dealing a major blow to the UK’s renewable energy ambitions.
Hornsea 4, at a massive 2.4 gigawatts (GW), would have become one of the largest offshore wind farms in the world, generating enough clean electricity to power over 1 million UK homes. But Ørsted announced that it’s abandoning the project “in its current form.”
“The adverse macroeconomic developments, continued supply chain challenges, and increased execution, market, and operational risks have eroded the value creation,” said Rasmus Errboe, group president and CEO of Ørsted.
Reuters reported that Ørsted’s cancellation of Hornsea 4 would result in a projected loss of up to 5.5 billion Danish crowns ($837.85 million) in breakaway fees and asset write-downs. The company’s market value has declined by 80% since its peak in 2021.
The cancellation highlights significant challenges currently facing offshore wind development in Europe, particularly in the UK. The combination of higher material costs, inflation, and global financial instability has made large-scale renewable projects increasingly difficult to finance and complete.
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Ørsted’s decision is a significant setback to the UK’s energy transition goals. The UK currently has around 15 GW of offshore wind, and Hornsea 4’s size would have provided almost 7% of the additional capacity needed for the UK’s 50 GW by 2030 target, according to The Times. Losing this immense project off the Yorkshire coast could hamper the UK’s pace of reducing dependency on fossil fuels, especially amid volatile global energy markets.
The UK government reiterated its commitment to renewable energy, promising to work closely with industry leaders to overcome financial and logistical hurdles. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband told reporters in Norway that the UK is “still committed to working with Orsted to seek to make Hornsea 4 happen by 2030.”
Ørsted says it remains committed to its other UK-based projects, including the Hornsea 3 wind farm, which is expected to generate around 2.9 GW once completed at the end of 2027. Despite the challenges, the company emphasized its ongoing commitment to the British renewable market, pointing to the critical need for policy support and economic stability to ensure future developments.
Yet, the cancellation of Hornsea 4 demonstrates that even flagship renewable projects are vulnerable in the face of economic pressures and global uncertainties, which have been heightened under the Trump administration in the US.
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The Tesla Roadster appears to be quietly disappearing after years of delay. is it ever going to be made?
I may have jinxed it with Betteridge’s Law of Headlines, which suggests any headline ending in a question mark can be answered with “no.”
The prototype for the next-generation Tesla Roadster was first unveiled in 2017, and it was supposed to come into production in 2020, but it has been delayed every year since then.
It was supposed to get 620 miles (1,000 km) of range and accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 1.9 seconds.
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It has become a sort of running joke, and there are doubts that it will ever come to market despite Tesla’s promise of dozens of free new Roadsters to Tesla owners who participated in its referral program years ago.
Tesla uses the promise of free Roadsters to help generate billions of dollars worth of sales, which Tesla owners delivered, but the automaker never delivered on its part of the agreement.
Furthermore, many people placed deposits ranging from $50,000 to $250,000 to reserve the vehicle, which was supposed to hit the market 5 years ago.
“With respect to Roadster, we’ve completed most of the engineering. And I think there’s still some upgrades we want to make to it, but we expect to be in production with Roadster next year. It will be something special.”
He said that Tesla had completed “most of the engineering”, but he initially said the engineering would be done in 2021 and that was already 3 years after the prototype was unveiled and a year after it was supposed to be in production:
There was one small update about the Roadster in Tesla’s financial results last month.
The automaker has a table of all its vehicle production, and the Roadster was updated from “in development” to “design development” in the table:
It’s not clear if that’s progress or Tesla is just rephrasing it. Either way, it is not “construction”, which makes it unlikely that the Roadster is going into production this year.
If ever…
Electrek’s Take
It looks like Tesla owes about 80 Tesla Roadsters for free to Tesla owners who referred purchases, and it owes significant discounts on hundreds of units.
It’s hard for me to believe that Tesla is not delivering the new Roadster because the vehicle program would start about $100 million in the red, but at this point, I have no idea. It very well might be the reason.
However, I think it’s more likely that Tesla is just terrible at bringing multiple vehicle programs to market simultaneously. Case in point: it launched a single new vehicle in the last five years.
At this point, I think it’s more likely that the Roadster will never happen. It will join other Tesla products like the Cybertruck Range Extender.
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The 2025 Lucid Air isn’t just any luxury sedan. It’s the world’s most efficient car with over 400 miles of range. After introducing new discounts this month, Lucid is offering over $20,000 in savings on select 2025 Air models.
Lucid Air EV discounts top $20,000 in May
In the first quarter, the Lucid Air was the best-selling EV and the third top-selling sedan overall in its segment, including gas-powered cars.
After launching the 2025 Air Pure last summer, Lucid claimed it was the “world’s most efficient car” at 5.0 miles of range per kWh. That translates to over 420 miles of EPA-estimated range and the highest MPGe rating of any EV at 146 MPGe.
Lucid introduced new discounts this month, making the 2025 Air significantly more affordable. The 2025 Lucid Air Touring is available with up to $20,500 in savings with leases starting at just $599 for 36 months.
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The promo includes a $1,000 on-site bonus, a $2,000 conquest offer, a $10,000 Air Credit, and a $7,500 EV credit.
Other trims, including the Lucid Air Pure and Lucid Air Grand Touring, offer discounts of up to $18,000 and $15,500, respectively.
2025 Lucid Air offers (Source: Lucid)
The 2025 Lucid Air Touring starts at $78,900 with 620 HP and 406 miles of range. Lucid is offering 2025 Air Pure models from $69,900, with up to 420 miles of range. The Grand Touring gets up to 512 miles with prices starting at $110,900.
Lucid increased its Tesla trade-in allowance this month, which can save you an additional $4,000. To take advantage of the deals, you must take delivery by May 31, 2025.
That’s based on an MSRP of $94,900 with a down payment of $8,030. Later this year, Lucid will launch the lower-priced Touring model, starting at $79,900.
Ready to check out Lucid’s luxury EVs for yourself? You can use our links below to view current offers on Lucid Air and Gravity models in your area.
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