Nikola eyes BEV truck market

INCOMING Nikola CEO Michael Lohscheller has taken to the stage at the IAA Transportation 2022 conference to pitch the brand’s zero-emission trucks to potential customers and investors.

The former Opel chief executive said he is confident that he can turnaround the company’s tarnished perception and raise the revenue required to level Nikola toe-to-toe with rivals including the Tesla Semi.

“The answer is very straightforward: Let the product speak the real language,” Mr Lohscheller told Automotive News at the IAA Transportation conference.

“Do we have a product which is real, which drives, which is doing the job? The answer is yes.”

Prototype models are already proving themselves on US roads with Mr Lohscheller saying their drivers are impressed by the smoothness of operation and accessible pulling power.

Mr Lohscheller, who joined Nikola in March this year, said Nikola’s joint venture with Iveco in Germany has helped to iron out issues with production of the truck, the imported cabs allowing Nikola to avoid investing in expensive tooling, and focus on the electric driveline, battery packs and software.

“When we went into serial production, I felt much better … It is real. We have a factory, we are producing trucks. We are selling trucks,” he said.

“We have done some design changes, but not big ones. We also get components of the architecture from them (Iveco).”

In the second quarter of 2022, Nikola produced 50 battery-electric trucks and delivered 48. It is on track to produce between 65 and 70 in the third quarter.

Further into the future, Nikola plans to use Bosch-sourced fuel cell stacks to produce hydrogen-electric trucks for sale in North America – and beyond. The FCEV models are expected to enter production in the second-half of next year (2023).

In the meantime, however, Nikola must compete with legacy manufacturers including Daimler and Volvo. Both are pushing quickly into electric heavy-duty truck production in the United States and Europe, and both have joint ventures established to develop hydrogen fuel cell technology.

Other manufacturers, including BYD, Hyundai and Paccar (which owns Kenworth and Peterbilt) are also moving ahead in the segment.

But according to industry insiders, Nikola’s agility as a smaller player may give it an advantage. By building its own refuelling network along routes used by its first clients, the company’s aggressive strategy is tipped to help it to not only secure selected freight corridors, but to form strategic distribution hubs around its valuable infrastructure.

“(At the moment) I could sell you a (hydrogen-powered) truck, but good luck finding hydrogen … I have to make sure that I can offer you the hydrogen as well – we need to bring these things together,” said Mr Lohscheller.

with Automotive News