Nikola trucking electric trucks hopes to sell what is left of its entire business already in April, company lawyers told a judge on Thursday at the first hearing of the bankruptcy case in Delaware.
Lawyers claimed that Nikola already has at least three interested buyers (who did not name) and that the company hopes to request other bids, with a deadline for submission in late March.
If Nikola cannot find a buyer willing to take over the entire business, the company will rotate to sell its assets in pieces in an effort to satisfy more than $ 1 billion in obligations. (Nikola claims that between 500 million and $ 1 billion in assets.)
The listening took place just a day after Nikola was submitted to protect capital 11 and announced that it would no longer operate as an autonomous business, ending a drama -plagued company after Trevor Milton’s condemnation of Multiple counting Scam of mobile values.
Nikola has been trying to sell himself for months, some of the first bankruptcy deposits, and lawyers’ statements show.
In a chartered statement, Managing Director Stephen Girsky said Nikola worked with Goldman Sachs and requested 22 potential buyers in the logistics and trucking areas. Two “international car
Manufacturers expressed interest “in a transaction, According to Girsky. Someone fell. Nikola also exchanged “different terms” with the other until the party also left at the end of 2024.
After that failed, Nikola worked with the Houlihan Lokey law firm to seek 24 financial investors to “measure interest in both an autonomous investment and an investment with a possible strategic partner”. The feedback, however, was that it would require a lot of money to turn Nikola’s budding business, according to Girsky.
In December 2024, Nikola ended in discussions with another “international vehicle manufacturing company” on a possible acquisition, passing by what Girsky described as “substantial due diligence” over a four -week period. But the prospective buyer “finally left”, which Girsky noted was a “frustrating conclusion”.
Now in bankruptcy, Girsky has told the court that Nikola is in “active discussions with at least three” parties interested in buying the company and that they also trade in some of the highest value assets for potential sales, such as the Coolidge factory, Arizona.
Chazz Coleman, a lawyer who represents Nikola in the bankruptcy case, said he expects the case and the sale process “smooth and smooth”.
Nikola will continue to ask for interest until March 27, the first proposed date for bidding deadline, Joshua Morse, another lawyer representing Nikola on Thursday. Depending on how this process goes, there could be auction around March 31. A hearing for any possible sale will occur in the second week of April, with the closure of the transaction shortly afterwards.
Morse also said during the hearing that incoming interest from potential buyers have only been escalated since the company has deposited for bankruptcy protection.
“It tends to crystallize the market,” replied Bankruptcy Judge Thomas Horan.
There was little disagreement during the hearing, mainly around the speed of the bankruptcy case. Nikola wants to move quickly because it only has about $ 47 million in cash. Timothy Fox, a lawyer for the US administrator’s office, who oversees bankruptcy procedures, said he wants to make sure he has enough time to meet Nikola’s creditors.
No decision was made during the hearing on the timetable, but Nikola found support for a quick process from a strange party: a group of shareholders who sued the company more than four years ago.
The plaintiffs in this case received a class-in-course status just last month, and Nikola agreed to settle the lawsuit shortly before undergoing bankruptcy. These plaintiffs have the fourth largest creditor claim in Nikola’s bankruptcy thanks to settlement, a total of about $ 13 million.
Joe Barsalona, a lawyer who represents the plaintiffs-in-control plaintiffs, said on Thursday that, since, since Nikola’s reduced cash balance, “it is imperative for our client that this case is rapidly moving.”
“We believe it is a melting ice cube,” Barsalona said.
