17 July 2024
Fisker Inc. won bankruptcy court permission to sell its remaining electric-vehicle fleet of crossovers after slashing the price on glitchy vehicles sold to some customers for as much as $70,000.
Judge Brendan L. Shannon said at a hearing in Delaware Tuesday he’d approve selling roughly 3,300 Fisker vehicles for as much as $46.25 million to American Lease LLC, a company that leases cars, crossovers and SUVs to New York City-based Uber and Lyft drivers. Fisker vehicles “in reasonably good working order” could be sold to American Lease for $16,500, while damaged vehicles requiring at least $5,000 in repairs could fetch as little as $2,500, according to court papers.
The price represents a steep discount at a time when other buyers are still having problems getting their vehicles serviced and have already taken big losses.
The Justice Department’s bankruptcy watchdog challenged the deal, claiming the transaction represented a “fire sale” of Fisker’s remaining fleet. But company advisers said the transaction was the best available.
Judge Shannon said the sale needed to be approved quickly because Fisker was running low on cash, adding that few buyers besides American Lease could acquire so many vehicles at once.
A lawyer representing a group of customers who own Fisker Oceans said Tuesday they support the sale in light of the company’s substantial financial constraints.
Fisker Chief Restructuring Officer John DiDonato said in a sworn statement that American Lease was “uniquely positioned to purchase the Debtors’ EVs and the Debtors’ best prospect to monetize the Fisker Inventory.”