Transportation Provider Nikola Corp Merges With VectoIQ Acquisition Corp.
PHOENIX, AZ - Nikola Corp is showcasing what it means to have a green thumb in the produce industry without actually being a farmer. The transportation provider is growing its business and the presence of electric vehicles in the fresh produce supply chain after merging with VectoIQ Acquisition Corp in a transaction with an implied enterprise value of $3.3 billion, according to a report by the Phoenix Business Journal.
“We are very excited about this milestone in our journey,” said Mark Russel, the new Chief Executive Officer of Nikola, in a conference call. “We offer essentially freight-as-a-service with our bundled lease offer, which includes semi-truck, maintenance, and fuel.”
Nikola’s Founder and former CEO, Trevor Milton, added, “We both share the vision of a zero emission transportation future. When we first announced the Nikola One truck in 2016, we knew that vertical integration was key.”
Nikola Corp is a transportation startup that provides battery- and hydrogen-fuel-cell electric vehicles. Nikola’s status as a future tech leader focused on making a global difference was how the startup caught VectoIQ’s eye as a key partner. Together, the two companies are looking toward the future to grow the smart transportation sector, with Nikola anticipating its revenues to climb to as much as $150 million in 2021 and $3 billion by 2024.
“These numbers assume a projected 600 battery-electric trucks are sold in 2021, and up to 7,000 battery electric trucks and 5,000 fuel cell electric trucks sold in 2024,” Kim Brady, Chief Financial Officer for Nikola Corp, noted in the conference call. “With the first three years of manufacturing capacity already booked, we have good visibility into future performance.”
In addition, Nikola is planning on use the proceeds from the merger to accelerate its portfolio of electric semi-trucks and other vehicles, as noted by the news source.
The merger will also make Nikola Corp a publicly traded company on the Nasdaq—a move that follows Tesla's (one of the leaders amongst the zero emissions transportation movement) own success in public trading.
How will Nikola drive real change in sustainability and transportation? And how will this change affect the produce industry across the supply chain? AndNowUKnow will continue to report.
