On the one hand, Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk has no intentions of producing a low-cost all-electric vehicle, one of its top executives confirmed on Tuesday.
On the flip side is Fisker (FSR), the upstart EV maker run by electric-vehicle veteran Henrik Fisker, which also on Tuesday rolled out its very first Fisker Ocean on Magna International’s (MGA) high-volume production line.
First reported by Fisker news and information provider Fiskerati, the first Ocean making it through Magna's assembly line is a milestone for Fisker, which has been working on getting its own Tesla competitor on the streets for several years. Official production of the Ocean is slated to begin in 66 days.
View the original article to see embedded media.
Fisker was actually one of few stocks that gained on Tuesday amid a broad market selloff that saw shares across the board clock in their worst performance since the early dark days of the pandemic.
Fisker shares closed flat on the day at $8.88. The stock has gained more than 8% in the past five trading days, though is still down more than 46% year to date.
Fisker's First Production-Intent Fisker Ocean
The market downdraft didn’t appear to deter Fisker founder, head designer and CEO Henrik Fisker, who gathered with select members of the Fisker and Magna teams to celebrate the rollout of the first Ocean in Mariana blue.
“Wooooow!!!! 1st car being assembled on the actual line at the Magna manufacturing plant! 😀😃😄 next is certification!, Henrik Fisker said on Instagram.
It is a major milestone for Henrik Fisker, who has been gunning for Tesla’s and Musk’s dominance in the electric vehicle market with his own plans to mass-produce EVs that are not only reliable and affordable, but also sustainably made.
TheStreet Recommends: Henrik Fisker: We're Still In Infant Stage of Battery Tech
View the original article to see embedded media.
Fisker said last month that the Fisker Ocean One sold out in 30 days, with each secured by a $5,000 deposit, which amounts to $350 million in potential revenue once all the vehicles are delivered.
Production is slated to start Nov. 15, with deliveries starting shortly thereafter.
The Extreme model will sell for about $69,000, while the Ultra is priced at about $50,000 and the Sport will go for $37,499 before incentives -- still more expensive than General Motors' (GM) $30,000 Equinox EV announced last week, but still more affordable than Tesla's cheapest Model 3, which starts at $48,440.
Potential Potholes to Navigate for Fisker
The Ocean will be cruising on some bumpy roads at it joins electric-vehicle titan Tesla and other legacy automakers including GM and Ford (F) that have longer-term plans to bury the internal combustion engine.
Last year Fisker and Magna International finalized a long-term manufacturing agreement under which Magna will produce the Ocean at a plant in Austria.
Based in Aurora, Ontario, Canada, just north of Toronto, Magna has developed more than 40 complete vehicles and derivatives and has produced about 3.7 million vehicles, according to the company's website.
Fisker himself is no stranger to electric cars, and certainly no stranger to the automotive industry’s evolution. Having created one of the world’s first electric vehicles more than a decade ago -- before Tesla -- Fisker is intent on putting his last name to what he sees as the next evolution in people-moving technology and design.
Fisker went public in October 2020 in a so-called SPAC reverse merger deal that netted the company about $1 billion in capital.
