Nikola, the electric and hydrogen semi truck maker, announced on Friday that it was recalling all the battery-powered electric trucks that it has delivered so far and suspending sales until further notice. The decision came after an investigation into recent fire incidents involving its trucks found a coolant leak inside a battery pack as the probable cause.
The company said that the preliminary findings of the probe by a third-party investigator were confirmed on Thursday by a “minor thermal incident” on one pack on a parked engineering-validation truck. No one was injured in the incident, and the company ruled out any foul play or external factors.
According to Nikola, the internal investigations by its safety and engineering teams indicated that a single supplier component within the battery pack was the likely source of the coolant leak that caused the vehicles to catch fire. The company did not name the supplier or the component, but said that it was working to provide a remedy as soon as possible.
Nikola asks customers and dealers to take safety measures
Nikola said that it was recalling about 209 of its Class 8 Tre battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) as a precautionary measure. The company is currently in the process of filing this voluntary recall with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and is placing a temporary hold on new BEV sales until a resolution is in place.
The company also asked its customers and dealers of its Tre BEVs to take certain immediate safety measures, including considering parking them outside, keeping them away from flammable materials, and avoiding charging them overnight or unattended.
Nikola said that it was committed to ensuring the safety of its customers, employees, and communities, and that it would provide regular updates on the recall and sales suspension. The company also said that it would continue to focus on developing its hydrogen fuel cell trucks, which are not affected by the recall.
Nikola’s shares tumble after recall announcement
Nikola’s shares fell as much as 5.6% after the close of trading on Friday following the recall announcement. The company’s stock has been under pressure since last year, when its founder and former chairman Trevor Milton resigned amid allegations of fraud and misleading investors about its products and technology. Milton was later indicted by federal prosecutors and pleaded not guilty.
The company also reported a net loss of $387 million for the first half of 2023, up from $326 million in the same period last year. The company’s loss from continuing operations was down compared to last year, though. The company flagged “substantial doubts” about its ability to continue as a going concern for the next 12 months, reiterating its warning for the third time since February, as it awaits “critical” additional capital.
Nikola also announced on Friday that its CEO Michael Lohscheller was leaving the company effective immediately due to a family health emergency. He will be replaced by Stephen Girsky, a former General Motors executive who had been chairman of the board. Girsky will retain a board seat, but give up the chairman role as he transitions to CEO. Lohscheller had been CEO for less than a year, and Girsky is the company’s fourth CEO in four years.
