Nikola Corporation (NKLA) is under fire in the press.
Reportedly, company founder Trevor Milton exaggerated the readiness of the Nikola One, its debut truck. In fact, according to Bloomberg, “the truck didn’t even have a fuel cell in it. Milton even confirmed that the prototype never drove under its own power.”
“That the truck was inoperable wouldn’t have been a big deal — plenty of concepts aren’t functional beyond some lights and seats, some not even that much. Based on Milton’s statements, it would seem to us that he was dishonest and that now, some three-and-a-half years later, he’s profiting on that dishonesty to the tune of $7.8 billion,” as noted by CNET.
Milton Says He “Never Deceived Anyone”
With the company expecting to begin production this year, Milton says, he “never deceived anyone” and that parts had been removed from the vehicle for safety reasons.
Milton isn’t too pleased with Bloomberg contributor Edward Ludlow over the story either.
In a series of tweets, he noted:
“This is sad. @EdLudlow should be let go. He will never set foot in my building or events Nikola puts on. No one in Bloomberg either. His editor was even on the phone to hear my responses.”
“The best part is, the interview was recorded so it will be fun suing the s** out of them now. I can’t wait to subpoena him and his editor. I am going to set an example for anyone who is a hackjob like @EdLudlow . Make no mistake, this article was intentional and pre meditated.”
He’s also moving forward with legal action against Bloomberg. His attorney’s letter to Bloomberg can be found here.
At the moment, shares of NKLA are down about 65 cents to $63.43 after rocketing from a low of $10.40 to a high of nearly $94.
Stay tuned for more on this developing story.
The post War of Words: Nikola May Have Overstated Functionality of Nikola One appeared first on Morningology.
