Is Fisker the next Solyndra?

[Capt Worley PE]

The government-backed electric car company Fisker Automotive laid off about 160 workers Friday, or roughly 75 percent of the automaker's staff, as it has struggled to find financial backing that would allow it to continue building its high concept clean cars.

The layoff announcement came as the innovative start up faces a looming repayment on a loan from the U.S. Department of Energy, and as reports have swirled that it could be preparing to file for bankruptcy. As with the failed solar firm Solyndra, the green car company was once an early pick by the Obama Administration to be part of America's clean energy future. The Obama Energy Department had approved Fisker for a government loan up to $529 million.

More: http://gma.yahoo.com/signs-solyndra-fisker-lays-off-75-percent-employees-200604719--abc-news-topstories.html

Like Solyndra, there were all sorts of red flags about how the company was being run that should have set off alarm bells. They would have to normal bankers, which is probably why they had to turn to the government.

The governments is pushing an agenda ahead of common sense. The agenda I really don't have a problem with. That's what governments do. My problem is with the lack of common sense.

 

[Master slacker]

Accountability for my actions? That's someone else's problem. Right?

 

[Road Guy]

I would love for someone to make these two options viable but throwing close to a billion dollars of taxpayer money away isn't the right way..

 

[Flyer_PE]

It's always easier to spend money that was earned by somebody else. When it comes from the government, it's a gift, not a loan.

 

[Judowolf PE]

Lets see, 529 million and 175 employees, that's right at 3 million per green job, sounds right on track for the current administration

 

[Capt Worley PE]

I would love for someone to make these two options viable but throwing close to a billion dollars of taxpayer money away isn't the right way..

To spend money on the manufacture of such things is bad policy. What the government should do is fund research and put the results into public domain. Let everyone have access to the data. THAT will breed a lot more innovation than throwing money at suits with a nice PowerPoint presentation on their business.

 

[Flyer_PE]

I would love for someone to make these two options viable but throwing close to a billion dollars of taxpayer money away isn't the right way..

To spend money on the manufacture of such things is bad policy. What the government should do is fund research and put the results into public domain. Let everyone have access to the data. THAT will breed a lot more innovation than throwing money at suits with a nice PowerPoint presentation on their business that are politically connected and promise large campaign contributions.

I don't think these companies even had the fancy power point presentations.

 

[Judowolf PE]

^Nope, just enough money to make donations to the right political campaigns...

 

[Road Guy]

I'd prefer 0.0 tax payer dollars, if it was viable it would "come into being". Just to make sure my earlier post made sense..

 

[Capt Worley PE]

DETROIT (Reuters) -- Fisker Automotive could file for bankruptcy protection as soon as this week as the U.S. Department of Energy pressures the green-car startup to pay back nearly $200 million in government loans.

The DoE appears to be pushing a Chapter 11 filing soon by Fisker, several sources close to the company told Reuters on Monday. Fisker's attorneys have drawn up bankruptcy documents and are ready to file in the next few days, Reuters reported.

Fisker's board of directors will discuss its options at a meeting today, one of the sources said. Directors, who have not given up on a possible sale, are expected to make a decision on the timing of a possible Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing at that time, one source said.

The relationship between the DoE and Fisker has been strained in the last several months at a time when top Fisker executives have been trying unsuccessfully to attract buyers, mainly in China and Europe, to stave off bankruptcy.

"They want to get it in the past so that the next DoE secretary doesn't have to deal with it," one source close to the talks said of the government's desire to distance itself from Fisker's well-publicized financial struggles. "They want to basically force the issue."

Read more: http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130409/OEM/130409894/fisker-preparing-to-file-chapter-11-as-soon-as-this-week-report-says&cciid=email-autonews-daily#ixzz2Q41K6uJl

 

[Judowolf PE]

Is it just me or are all of these companies that recieved green grants go bankrupt and then sell out to China at pennies on the dollar?!

 

[Flyer_PE]

Is it just me or are all of these companies that recieved green grants go bankrupt and then sell out to China at pennies on the dollar?!

The main problem is that pennies are all they were worth in the first place. Since they are having problems finding buyers, they may not even be worth that.

 

[Road Guy]

Wait I've got it figured out! The government could then make all of it agencies buy these cars so that ther would then be buyers! omg why haven't they thought of thr yet (scared cause I'm sure that is being considered)

 

[Capt Worley PE]

^The gov and GE were supposed to be big Volt buyers..then they backed out.

 

[Capt Worley PE]

Bloomberg

April 18, 2013
by Angela Greiling Keane

Fisker Automotive Inc. spent more than six times as much U.S. taxpayer and investor money to produce each luxury plug-in car it sold than the company received from customers, according to a research report.

The Anaheim, California-based company made about 2,500 of its $103,000 Karmas before halting production last year, disrupting its plans to use a $529 million U.S. loan to restart a shuttered Delaware factory owned by the predecessor of General Motors Co. (GM) The Karma was assembled in Finland.

Fisker was allowed to keep using money from its Energy Department loan after violating its terms multiple times, according to a report released April 17 by PrivCo, a New York- based researcher specializing in closely held companies. It said it based its report on documents, including the loan agreement, obtained through the U.S. Freedom of Information Act.

“They made a mistake” in awarding the loan, PrivCo Chief Executive Officer Sam Hamadeh said of the Energy Department in an interview yesterday. “Should they have fought this sooner? Obviously -- as soon as it became evident that they had begun to default.”

PrivCo’s report contains errors, particularly in asserting the Energy Department knew by December 2010 that the carmaker wasn’t meeting milestones required to keep drawing taxpayer funds, Bill Gibbons, a department spokesman, said in an e-mail yesterday. The department cut off Fisker’s funding in June 2011, after the company drew down about $193 million.

“PrivCo’s assertion that Fisker defaulted in December 2010 is simply false,” Gibbons said. “The milestones that PrivCo includes in its report are also wrong. The fact is, the department stopped disbursements on the loan after the company stopped meeting its milestones.”