NIKOLA BADGER REMOVED FROM COMPANY’S NEW BUSINESS PLAN, GM SEEKS MORE EQUITY

General Motors unknowingly got themselves involved in quite a mess when they inked a $2 billion deal with electric automaker Nikola Motors on September 8th. In the weeks that have followed, the company has been accused of massive fraud, the SEC has started an investigation into the company, while founder and executive chairman Trevor Milton has been ousted from his post and faces accusations of sexual abuse. Despite the setbacks however, GM has stood their ground thus far behind their new partner. However, some new reporting suggests that things won’t be going as originally planned, even as far as to say that the Nikola Badger electric truck may not be happening.

According to a report from The Detroit News, it is likely that General Motors will ask for a higher stake in Nikola Motors during a renegotiation period that is currently underway. The original $2 billion deal was inked when Nikola’s stock was riding high at $42.93 a share. It is now valued at $23.92 at the time of writing. This disparity in stock price takes a lot of value out of the deal for GM, who already are on the hook to provide fuel cell and battery technology to the EV manufacturer.

General Motors taking a larger chunk of Nikola Motors isn’t the only recent development in the story. According to a report from CNBC, talks are ongoing as to whether or not the Nikola Badger will be produced by GM at all. Despite  being a part of the initial contract, the Badger has been removed from the company’s updated business plan. In an interview with CNBC, Nikola CEO Mark Russell said that talks are still ongoing surrounding the pickup. General Motors will be rolling out their first electric truck later this month with the debut of the GMC Hummer EV.

Nikola Motors and GM have until December 3rd to finalize the details of their deal, at which point the future of the automaker will be more clear. The company has stressed that they will be focusing on their semi trucks moving forward, which could be the result of pressure from GM. Either way, it is unclear at this point what will happen to the Nikola Badger pickup.