Sources close to the embattled fuel cell truck manufacturer are reporting that founder Trevor Milton has resigned as executive chairman of Nikola Motor (NASDAQ: NKLA) and has departed the company effective immediately.
He will remain as one of the company’s largest shareholders, but will not have a say in how the company is managed going forward. Sources tell FreightWaves that the decision was Milton’s, in an effort to protect the company and his investment. Milton owns approximately 82 million shares or 20% of the company, worth about $2.8 billion.
Milton created a vision for a hydrogen-powered trucking industry. His comments about the capabilities of Nikola and the hydrogen-powered trucking network he planned to build have occasionally stretched beyond what is physically possible, leaving many detractors to highlight these statements as proof that the company is a scam.
Others, including many in the industry and suppliers that partnered with the company, saw a firm with a grand vision and opportunity to make a major impact on the future of transportation. If successful, Nikola could greatly reduce the carbon footprint from one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions. The EPA estimates that 6.4% of all such emissions in the U.S. come from medium- and heavy-duty trucks.
Before the company went public, few had heard of Nikola outside of the heavy-duty trucking industry. The company completed a reverse merger IPO or SPAC offering in June, which gave the company a valuation higher than Ford’s. Nikola has yet to mass produce a product, and all of its revenue to date came from selling solar panel installation services to Milton.
This is a developing story. Stay tuned to FreightWaves for updates.
Jerry Roane
If you want no fuel cost there was a talk on MOVE America called “Going Fully Solar this month that was about HEFF that is at the DOE. Hyper-Efficient Flexfuel Freight would stop polluting our air and move 5,000 pounds of materials at 180 mph using only the sun’s radiation. Problem is hydrogen is all the DOE can think about. Hydrogen is too expensive and super high pressure tanks have no place on the highway.
dave harlin
As a retired truck driver for 48 years I can smell b.s. a mile away. his technological claims have gotten more outlandish over the past three years. He claimed they had Breakthru’s that pretty much all the experts in the field said were at best ten years away. My question is why are these new trucks all so ugly and stupid looking? I think you can build a truck that is non-polluting and good looking enough to appeal to the drivers. some of these drivers also are truck owners and spend 80% or more of their lives in that truck. come on peterbilt get er done.
Davinci
Hydrogen Trucks? They were SUPPOSED to make electric and hydrogen. As a fleet owner my interest is in ELIMINATING fuel cost. Not simply.switching to another fuel. Sounds like I wont be completing my Nikola order.
Ari Bloch
Nikola has claimed that they have made hydrogen way cheaper, likely even than diesel but in reality I think they haven’t done much actual work with hydrogen
Daniel I Homant
They were always intended to be hybrid trucks. Not pure battery.
I don’t know why you thought otherwise, unless you are mistaking them for Tesla.
William
Build your own fuel cell. I did. It doubled my milage. Its small scale in my wife’s old Toyota. But works very well. Just a thought.
Joe Maris
Wow Nikola’s first hard critique and Trevor Milton resigns. It seems like in all his past companies he’s left as soon as the going gets tough. Afterwards, the companies either folded or went bankrupt. After this, I doubt anyone would want to buy Nikola (at these prices) so it seems like Nikola is going down the toilet (which is exactly what Trevor resigned to prevent). Oof
Marki
I smell a General Motors take over
Portlander
“I smell a General Motors take over”
Why would GM do that? Nikola owns no technology whatsoever, despite many claims by Trevor.
skierpage
“green-house emissions”: “greenhouse” is one word.
“all of it’s revenue”: Not a contraction of “it is” or “it has”, so no apostrophe.
The Hindenburg Research report, and its subsequent takedown of Nikola’s “We admit some things and ignore the rest” incomplete response, is brutal. So much deception for no working product.
Sky
Theranos part 2, here we go!!
R. Whitney
Theranos parts 2, 3 & 4.
Mark
Hmmm… late on Sunday Night and Freightwaves.com someone gets this info. Fake news??? Seems very odd.
Paul
It is confirmed now – by TM’s Twitter and Instagram accounts.
Not fake news.
Portlander
Not at all odd for the people following Nikola and Trevor. We are actually surprised it took this long.
It is also shocking that the company has not yet been completely shut down by regulators. It is only a matter of time.