Fisker's Dept of Energy Loan to Be Auctioned Off Today

TTAC Staff
by TTAC Staff

The United States Department of Energy will today auction off Fisker Automotive’s loan from the federal government, on which the moribund hybrid car startup defaulted. Last month the department said that it would hold the auction after “exhausting any realistic possibility” that it could recoup all of the $168 million still that Fisker still owes.

Purchasing the debt could be the first step to revive Fisker, which hasn’t built any cars in over a year. The company hasn’t yet gone through bankruptcy, as investors are covering its day to day expenses, but it cannot pay millions of dollars in outstanding bills and it has laid off most of its employees. Company founder designer Henrik Fisker, resigned last March, citing differences of opinion on the company’s future.

Though the federal government is currently undergoing a partial shutdown, the auction will proceed as planned today.Bidders had until Monday of this week to tell the DoE that they planned to make an offer. To qualify to bid, potential buyers had to offer at least $30 million, with a mandatory 10% down payment when placing the bid. That would be the least part of restarting Fisker, which analysts say could cost a half billion dollars or more. Fisker Automotive and the law firm handling its restructuring, Kirkland & Ellis, could not be reached for comment.

The winner of the bid process could be named as soon as next week. The DoE originally extended Fisker a credit line of $528 million under the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing loan program in 2009, but the department froze it in mid 2011 after Fisker failed to meet production benchmarks specified in the loan. Of the $528 million allocated, Fisker drew down $192 million before the freeze.

So far this year, at least three possible buyers of Fisker have surfaced. German investment group Fritz Nols AG, according to sources, was one of the companies that submitted a bid to the DoE. Another team that includes Bob Lutz and Chinese auto supplier Wanxiang Group also submitted a bid. That group had previously tried to buy the entire company for $20 million. It’s not clear if that attempt is related to VL Automotive, an enterprise of Lutz’s that’s selling the Destino, a Fisker Karma whose hybrid drivetrain has been replaced by a supercharged LS9 V8 as used in the Corvette ZR1. It’s also been rumored that Henrik Fisker might try to purchase the remains of his namesake company.

Buying the DoE loan would be just the first step in a long process to revive the company. Fisker currently owes suppliers about $80 million, including about $10 million owed to Valmet Automotive, a Finnish company that assembled the Karma under contract. Analysts say that restarting Karma production would cost at least $50 million and reviving the development of the Atlantic, Fisker’s proposed $50,000 sedan, would cost about half a billion dollars.

Any purchaser would also have to settle Fisker’s outstanding debts related to the former General Motors assembly plant in Wilmington, Delaware where Fisker planned to build the Atlantic. The company owes about a million dollars in various local taxes and because it missed a deadline to pay, the company has forfeited a break on future county property taxes.

At the time this was posted, ~3:00 PM EST, there has been no news released about the auction results. The Department of Energy’s public affairs office is still operating during the partial government shutdown, TTAC has contacted that office, and we’ll update this post if they release any information by the close of business today.

TTAC Staff
TTAC Staff

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  • Jpolicke Jpolicke on Oct 11, 2013

    I have...let's see...$22.24 in my pocket right now. They can have it but they have to throw in a demo.

  • Lorenzo Yes, they can recover from the Ghosn-led corporate types who cheapened vehicles in the worst ways, including quality control. In the early to mid-1990s Nissan had efficient engines, and reliable drivetrains in well-assembled, fairly durable vehicles. They can do it again, but the Japanese government will have to help Nissan extricate itself from the "Alliance". It's too bad Japan didn't have a George Washington to warn about entangling alliances!
  • Slavuta Nissan + profitability = cheap crap
  • ToolGuy Why would they change the grille?
  • Oberkanone Nissan proved it can skillfully put new frosting on an old cake with Frontier and Z. Yet, Nissan dealers are so broken they are not good at selling the Frontier. Z production is so minimal I've yet to see one. Could Nissan boost sales? Sure. I've heard Nissan plans to regain share at the low end of the market. Kicks, Versa and lower priced trims of their mainstream SUV's. I just don't see dealerships being motivated to support this effort. Nissan is just about as exciting and compelling as a CVT.
  • ToolGuy Anyone who knows, is this the (preliminary) work of the Ford Skunk Works?
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