Like every other startup, Nikola is in search of funds to continue its mission to deliver zero-pollution cargo-moving trucks. Last week, it floated a $100 million stock offering that underwhelmed Wall Street.
The company’s cash is being spent in three major areas: building trucks, creating a network of hydrogen fueling stations and developing software for autonomous driving. Any one of those pursuits would be a huge project for a startup. Perfecting all three seems like a moonshot.
But Lohscheller has been able to sign up partners to help defray some of the costs. And thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, which heavily incentivizes zero-emission trucks, Nikola could be in a good spot. California decreed all heavy-duty trucks must be electric by 2035 just last week.
“At the end of the day, our customers are interested in service, total cost of ownership and uptime,” Lohscheller said. “I am saying, let us compete with our trucks and with everyone else. And we are doing so in a very credible way.”