Costa Mesa, Calif. -- Fisker Automotive Inc. has obtained Bankruptcy Court approval of the sale of substantially all of its assets to Wanxiang America Corp. for $150 million, ending a failed federal investment in the plug-in hybrid manufacturer.
"The sale of Fisker's assets to Wanxiang affirms the value of the Fisker technology and its product development capability," says Marc A. Beilinson, Fisker Automotive's chief restructuring officer. "Our goal has been to obtain the highest and best value for our assets and to improve recoveries for our stakeholders. With the sale to Wanxiang valued at approximately $150 million, we have taken a critical step forward in this process."
Fisker leapt to the national stage at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit in 2008. Months ahead of a massive economic collapse, the company showed off a curvy, sporty car that would be powered by batteries and a 2L General Motors engine.
In 2009, it won a $528 million loan from the U.S. Department of Energy as part of a loan program meant to retool the U.S. auto industry for high-tech, fuel-efficient vehicles. Ford, for example, also received loans which it used to upgrade engine plants to make the EcoBoost turbocharged engines it features in its pickups. Nissan used loans to retool a portion of a Tennessee plant to make hybrids.
Between the recession and production problems, Fisker was never able to launch production in Delaware failed to meet several of the loan’s rules. The Energy Department locked the credit lines after Fisker had withdrawn about $192 million. It received some of those funds back before Firsker filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection, and it sold its remaining loans for $25 million, bringing the total federal loss on Fisker to $139 million.
The transaction is expected to close shortly, subject to customary closing conditions.
Source: Fisker Automotive, Department of Energy