Electric cars?

[basilio]

Tesla battery day is fast approaching and there is intense speculation on the advances that are anticipated in battery power, capacity and cost. This preview adds some background to the size of the electrification market.

Will Tesla Signal The Death Of The Internal Combustion Engine At Battery Day?

Will Tesla Signal The Death Of The Internal Combustion Engine At Battery Day? - ShareCafe

Corporate Connect research analyst Di Brookman takes us on the EV Journey, explains why all eyes and ears are poised for Tesla Battery Day, and how truly exciting times might be ahead for the sector.

www.sharecafe.com.au

 

[over9k]

Nikola founder has just resigned.

Man, what a wild ride that company has been on in the past couple of weeks.

 

[over9k]

8 Sep: Nikola announces a 2 billion dollar deal with GM to produce their electric/hybrid pickup truck: https://electrek.co/2020/09/08/nikola-gm-electric-hydrogen-pickup-truck-badger/

10 Sep: Hindenburg research, short sellers of nikola, allege massive fraud by the company: https://hindenburgresearch.com/nikola/

15 Sep: The SEC AND justice department announce investigations into said alleged fraud: https://www.autoweek.com/news/industry-news/a34041393/justice-dept-sec-probe-fraud-at-nikola/

20 Sep: Nikola founder RESIGNS: https://www.forbes.com/sites/alanoh...short-sellers-fraud-accusations/#70fc618418e0


Ooooh boy is tonight going to be ugly. Great news for anyone exposed to tesla & nio though


(Disclosure: I hold tesla & nio. I chose not to buy nikola when I was looking at all three. Sure glad I didn't now.)

 

[basilio]

View attachment 112042

8 Sep: Nikola announces a 2 billion dollar deal with GM to produce their electric/hybrid pickup truck: https://electrek.co/2020/09/08/nikola-gm-electric-hydrogen-pickup-truck-badger/

10 Sep: Hindenburg research, short sellers of nikola, allege massive fraud by the company: https://hindenburgresearch.com/nikola/

15 Sep: The SEC AND justice department announce investigations into said alleged fraud: https://www.autoweek.com/news/industry-news/a34041393/justice-dept-sec-probe-fraud-at-nikola/

20 Sep: Nikola founder RESIGNS: https://www.forbes.com/sites/alanoh...short-sellers-fraud-accusations/#70fc618418e0


Ooooh boy is tonight going to be ugly. Great news for anyone exposed to tesla & nio though


(Disclosure: I hold tesla & nio. I chose not to buy nikola when I was looking at all three. Sure glad I didn't now.)

WOW !!! Like WTF
This is Enron plus World COM.
The Hindenburg Research if correct represents a milestone in corporate malfeasance. I suggest they have dotted the "i "and crossed the "t".

I think Nikola will not survive this week.
Well worth reading.

Nikola: How to Parlay An Ocean of Lies Into a Partnership With the Largest Auto OEM in America

• Today, we reveal why we believe Nikola is an intricate fraud built on dozens of lies over the course of its Founder and Executive Chairman Trevor Milton’s career.
• We have gathered extensive evidence—including recorded phone calls, text messages, private emails and behind-the-scenes photographs—detailing dozens of false statements by Nikola Founder Trevor Milton. We have never seen this level of deception at a public company, especially of this size.
• Trevor has managed to parlay these false statements made over the course of a decade into a ~$20 billion public company. He has inked partnerships with some of the top auto companies in the world, all desperate to catch up to Tesla and to harness the EV wave.
• We examine how Nikola got its early start and show how Trevor misled partners into signing agreements by falsely claiming to have extensive proprietary technology.
• We reveal how, in the face of growing skepticism over the functionality of its truck, Nikola staged a video called “Nikola One in Motion” which showed the semi-truck cruising on a road at a high rate of speed. Our investigation of the site and text messages from a former employee reveal that the video was an elaborate ruse—Nikola had the truck towed to the top of a hill on a remote stretch of road and simply filmed it rolling down the hill.
• In October 2019, Nikola announced it would revolutionize the battery industry. This was to be done through a pending acquisition, but the deal fell through when Nikola realized (a) the technology was vaporware and (b) the President of the battery company had been indicted months earlier over allegations that he conned NASA by using his expense account to procure numerous prostitutes.
• Nikola has never walked back claims relating to its battery technology. Instead, Trevor continued to publicly hype the technology even after becoming aware of the above issues. The revolutionary battery technology never existed – now, Nikola plans to use GM’s battery technology instead.
• A spokesman for Volvo spin-off Powercell AB, a hydrogen fuel cell technology company that formerly partnered with Nikola, called Nikola’s battery and hydrogen fuel cell claims “hot air”.
• In addition to now using GM’s battery technology, Nikola seeks to use the automaker’s production and fuel cell capabilities. Nikola seems to be bringing nothing to the partnership but concept designs, their brand name and up to $700 million they will be paying GM for costs related to production.
• Inexpensive hydrogen is fundamental to the success of Nikola’s business model. Trevor has claimed in a presentation to hundreds of people and in multiple interviews to have succeeded at cutting the cost of hydrogen by ~81% compared to peers and to already be producing hydrogen. Nikola has not produced hydrogen at this price or at any price as he later admitted when pressed by media.
• Trevor has appointed his brother, Travis, as “Director of Hydrogen Production/Infrastructure” to oversee this critical part of the business. Travis’s prior experience looks to have largely consisted of pouring concrete driveways and doing subcontractor work on home renovations in Hawaii.
• Claims of owning energy producing assets is not new for Nikola. Trevor claimed that Nikola’s headquarters has 3.5 megawatts of solar panels on its roof producing energy. Aerial photos of the roof and later media reports show that the supposed panels don’t exist.
• At one point Nikola claimed to own its own natural gas wells. There is no evidence in company filings to support this. The claims were eventually quietly removed from Nikola’s website.
• Trevor claims Nikola designs all key components in house, but they appear to simply be buying or licensing them from third-parties. One example: we found that Nikola actually buys inverters from a company called Cascadia. In a video showing off its “in-house” inverters, Nikola concealed the Cascadia label with a piece of masking tape.
• In a July 2020 podcast, Trevor said of Nikola’s “Tre” truck: “We have five of them coming off the assembly line right now in Ulm Germany.” A spokesperson for Bosch, the manufacturing partner building the trucks, confirmed this month that they haven’t made any trucks yet.
• The company’s Nikola One “reveal” was a total farce. We corroborate Bloomberg’s earlier work debunking Trevor’s claims regarding its semi-truck that “this thing fully functions and works…this is a real truck” and provide new evidence.
• We present behind-the-scenes photos showing that Nikola had an electricity cable snaked up from underneath the stage into the truck in order to falsely claim the Nikola One’s electrical systems fully functioned.
• We learned through emails and interviews with former partners that Trevor had an artist stencil “H2” and “Zero Emission Hydrogen Electric” on the side of the Nikola One despite it having no hydrogen capabilities whatsoever; it was built with natural gas components.
• We also present evidence that subsequent “reveals” were fictitious. In 2019, Nikola revealed a “next generation” version of its off-road vehicle. We learned that it was scrapped within weeks of the unveiling due to manufacturing challenges. The redesign work was then quietly outsourced.
• Nikola’s much-touted multi-billion dollar order book is filled with fluff. U.S. Xpress reportedly accounts for a third of its reservations, representing ~$3.5 billion in orders. U.S. Xpress had only $1.3 million in cash on hand last quarter.
• Nikola’s key partners and backers have been cashing out aggressively. Worthington, Bosch and ValueAct have all sold shares. Worthington sold $237 million shares over a 2-day span in July and another $250 million in August. We think they know exactly what type of company Nikola is, and we expect that as Nikola’s GM “partnership” boosts the stock price, key holders will continue to exit.
• We think Trevor Milton, through dozens of outright lies, was able to form partnerships with some of the largest legacy auto companies in the world in their desperation to catch up to Tesla’s EV leadership status.
• Trevor has ensured he is not going down with the ship. He cashed out $70 million around the IPO and amended his share lock-up from 1-year to 180 days. If he is fired, his equity awards immediately vest and he is entitled to collect $20 million over two years. Milton has laid the groundwork to extract hundreds of millions from Nikola years before ever delivering on his promises.
• Every now and then a story comes around that exposes how little the “experts” really know. Theranos inked partnerships with Walgreens, Safeway, and Cleveland Clinic and staffed its board with luminaries. We think Nikola’s partners did not do their homework.

Initial Disclosure: After extensive research, we have taken a short position in shares of Nikola Corp. This report represents our opinion, and we encourage every reader to do their own due diligence. Please see our full disclaimer at the bottom of the report.

 

[over9k]

I wonder if they really properly knew about all this stuff before the GM deal and/or knew the GM deal was going to happen and just sat on it waiting for the deal to hit the news before they dropped the bomb.

An absolutely amazing ace in the hole to have if they knew it was coming, otherwise possibly the greatest stroke of luck in short-selling history.

I wonder what's going on at GM at the moment >_>

 

[over9k]

Down 26% pre-market alone. Tesla is up 2%. This puts it at $25 down from a peak of $52.

In 13 days.

 

[over9k]

I wonder how much Hindenburg end up making off of this (I.e whether they'll tell us or not). This is the kind of thing documentaries are made about.

 

[basilio]

I wonder how much Hindenburg end up making off of this (I.e whether they'll tell us or not). This is the kind of thing documentaries are made about.

If you want stories or documentaries about GIANT CORPORATE CONS see Billion Dollar Bubble, Enron The smartest guys in the room, The Big Short, The Big Lie ; Inside the rise and fraud of World Com.

I wonder who else will be exposed to the failure of Nikola.
Banks ? Suppliers ? Corporate partners ?

From that Hindenberg report I think there is very little intellectual capital in the company and the figures portending future sales are fictional.

This short clip throws some light on the allegations and attempts at refuting them.

 

[moXJO]

Steve jobs and elon musk are wankers to the highest order. But they get sht done.
They push people to achieve their goals or vision. Great at grandstanding in front of a crowd.

And that's all you need to succeed.

 

[over9k]

California to Ban Sales of New Gas-Powered Cars Starting in 2035

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an order that aims to end the sale of new gasoline and diesel-powered passenger cars in the state by 2035.

www.wsj.com

California bans sale of internal combustion cars from 2035.

It's not the first place in the world to do it: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-40726868#:~:text=In London, the city's Mayor,drive one you currently own.

 

[basilio]

Steve jobs and elon musk are wankers to the highest order. But they get sht done.
They push people to achieve their goals or vision. Great at grandstanding in front of a crowd.

And that's all you need to succeed.

Really ?? If pushing people and grandstanding in front of crowd was all that was necessary then the founder of Nikola Trevor Milton would also be home and hosed. As would a number of other arch promoters and grandstanders .

I think Steve and Elon had a lot more going for them as visionaries, leaders and achievers than many other B/S story tellers.

 

[moXJO]

Really ?? If pushing people and grandstanding in front of crowd was all that was necessary then the founder of Nikola Trevor Milton would also be home and hosed. As would a number of other arch promoters and grandstanders .

I think Steve and Elon had a lot more going for them as visionaries, leaders and achievers than many other B/S story tellers.

Really? If that were the case Elisabeth Holmes wouldn't have been a thing. Right place, right time...

 

[basilio]

Really? If that were the case Elisabeth Holmes wouldn't have been a thing. Right place, right time...

What do you mean Moxjo ? Yes Elisabeth Holmes started a mercurial health care company and became a multi billionaire .
It turned out to be a fraud, much like Nikola, and was undone through much investigative journalism.

Elizabeth Holmes - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[orr]

California to Ban Sales of New Gas-Powered Cars Starting in 2035

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an order that aims to end the sale of new gasoline and diesel-powered passenger cars in the state by 2035.

www.wsj.com

California bans sale of internal combustion cars from 2035.

It's not the first place in the world to do it: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-40726868#:~:text=In London, the city's Mayor,drive one you currently own.

Ford's net postion is around $150 Billion net Debt and their bonds are rated junk ... This news from California isn't seeming like something that's going to help their situation...And GM(slightly 'better' debt position) thinks Nikola is/was going to aid them...
Imagine the Board meetings in these companies; fantasy land...

 

[Smurf1976]

Ford's net postion is around $150 Billion net Debt and their bonds are rated junk ... This news from California isn't seeming like something that's going to help their situation...And GM(slightly 'better' debt position) thinks Nikola is/was going to aid them...

Ford and GM are classic examples of companies which failed to adapt to change indeed they actively tried to resist it in order to pursue short term profit at the expense of tomorrow. The problem with that is that tomorrow does come.

Now they're playing catchup and it may well be too late.

 

[moXJO]

What do you mean Moxjo ? Yes Elisabeth Holmes started a mercurial health care company and became a multi billionaire .
It turned out to be a fraud, much like Nikola, and was undone through much investigative journalism.

Elizabeth Holmes - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

I didn't say grandstanding alone in my original post. Holmes is an example of being that one dimensional. Grandstanding got her a long way. All she did was imitate steve jobs.

Have you read their histories from an author that wasn't a fan boy?

Anyway their PR skills outweighed their technical abilities.
They stood on the shoulders of the people around them.
For example:
Steve wozniak was a technical genius that made Apple 1 and 2 but he was a shy introvert.
Tony Fadell was the inventor of the ipod.

Elon likely stole every idea.

 

[basilio]

I didn't say grandstanding alone in my original post. Holmes is an example of being that one dimensional. Grandstanding got her a long way. All she did was imitate steve jobs.

Have you read their histories from an author that wasn't a fan boy?

Anyway their PR skills outweighed their technical abilities.
They stood on the shoulders of the people around them.
For example:
Steve wozniak was a technical genius that made Apple 1 and 2 but he was a shy introvert.
Tony Fadell was the inventor of the ipod.

Elon likely stole every idea.

I still don't understand where you are coming from and maybe that's where we leave it.
For the record.

1) No way was I a fan of Holmes. The Wiki story was very clear that she was essentially a promoter and a fraud from the beginning. The concept of getting hundreds of test results from a small thumb prick was fundamentally impossible.

2) I highlighted the current crisis with Nikola because it raised the issue of fraud in business and in particular the stock market. From my perspective far too much money has been made through the stock market by creating vapourware and ramping implausible and often impossible projects. If these frauds aren't quickly detected and stopped I suggest honest enterprises will suffer and essentially the profits will end in the hands of conmen and grifters. It is simply far eeasier and less risky to make billions of dollars from spruiking dodgy companies than actually making and selling a worthwhile product.

3) Elon likely stole every idea ? That is just snide. He of all company heads has a strong suit in coming up with imaginative ideas and then finding the people who can make them happen.

The Hindenberg report on Nikola is extensive and detailed. It also manages to highlight may other people who have constructed backstories to create faith in their current Big Lie.

Our Conclusion: Nikola is a Massive Fraud Constructed on Dozens of Lies

Sometimes people misspeak by accident. No one has a perfect memory, and we all occasionally get things wrong.

But what we have witnessed at Nikola, and specifically from Trevor Milton, is a pattern of well-planned and deliberate acts of deception ranging from (a) the staging of non-working products as if fully functional, wrapped in numerous lies about capabilities that don’t exist; (b) the staging of misleading videos, which require extensive premeditation, planning and execution; (c) material lies about capabilities, partnerships and products that simply do not exist at all, on video and often in front of entire rooms full of people; and (d) a culture of secrecy and intimidation that to this point has largely kept it all under wraps.

We think Trevor Milton is incapable of telling the truth. We believe he lies like most people breathe. It is natural for him, and our extensive review of his history suggests it has been this way throughout his entire business career.

Every now and then a story comes around that exposes how little the “experts” really know. Theranos had inked partnerships with Walgreens, Safeway, and Cleveland Clinic and had staffed its board with luminaries. Madoff raised billions in capital from sophisticated investors across the globe.

The remarkable thing about Nikola’s story is not that someone like Trevor Milton exists, but that he has managed to parlay his stories and lies into deals with some of the best manufacturers and partners in the world by claiming to own vast proprietary technology and having successfully built revolutionary products that simply didn’t exist.

He transformed these deceptions and false promises into an empire that at one point was valued at $34 billion, larger than Ford and Fiat Chrysler. He’s signed deals with GM, Anheuser Busch, Bosch, Worthington, and a slew of significant automotive players. He received investment from Fidelity and ValueAct, among other name-brand institutions.

We truly think Nikola is both a sign of the times and a story for the ages.

Nikola: How to Parlay An Ocean of Lies Into a Partnership With the Largest Auto OEM in America – Hindenburg Research

hindenburgresearch.com

 

[moXJO]

I still don't understand where you are coming from and maybe that's where we leave it.
For the record.

1) No way was I a fan of Holmes. The Wiki story was very clear that she was essentially a promoter and a fraud from the beginning. The concept of getting hundreds of test results from a small thumb prick was fundamentally impossible.

2) I highlighted the current crisis with Nikola because it raised the issue of fraud in business and in particular the stock market. From my perspective far too much money has been made through the stock market by creating vapourware and ramping implausible and often impossible projects. If these frauds aren't quickly detected and stopped I suggest honest enterprises will suffer and essentially the profits will end in the hands of conmen and grifters. It is simply far eeasier and less risky to make billions of dollars from spruiking dodgy companies than actually making and selling a worthwhile product.

3) Elon likely stole every idea ? That is just snide. He of all company heads has a strong suit in coming up with imaginative ideas and then finding the people who can make them happen.

The Hindenberg report on Nikola is extensive and detailed. It also manages to highlight may other people who have constructed backstories to create faith in their current Big Lie.

Our Conclusion: Nikola is a Massive Fraud Constructed on Dozens of Lies

Sometimes people misspeak by accident. No one has a perfect memory, and we all occasionally get things wrong.

But what we have witnessed at Nikola, and specifically from Trevor Milton, is a pattern of well-planned and deliberate acts of deception ranging from (a) the staging of non-working products as if fully functional, wrapped in numerous lies about capabilities that don’t exist; (b) the staging of misleading videos, which require extensive premeditation, planning and execution; (c) material lies about capabilities, partnerships and products that simply do not exist at all, on video and often in front of entire rooms full of people; and (d) a culture of secrecy and intimidation that to this point has largely kept it all under wraps.

We think Trevor Milton is incapable of telling the truth. We believe he lies like most people breathe. It is natural for him, and our extensive review of his history suggests it has been this way throughout his entire business career.

Every now and then a story comes around that exposes how little the “experts” really know. Theranos had inked partnerships with Walgreens, Safeway, and Cleveland Clinic and had staffed its board with luminaries. Madoff raised billions in capital from sophisticated investors across the globe.

The remarkable thing about Nikola’s story is not that someone like Trevor Milton exists, but that he has managed to parlay his stories and lies into deals with some of the best manufacturers and partners in the world by claiming to own vast proprietary technology and having successfully built revolutionary products that simply didn’t exist.

He transformed these deceptions and false promises into an empire that at one point was valued at $34 billion, larger than Ford and Fiat Chrysler. He’s signed deals with GM, Anheuser Busch, Bosch, Worthington, and a slew of significant automotive players. He received investment from Fidelity and ValueAct, among other name-brand institutions.

We truly think Nikola is both a sign of the times and a story for the ages.

Nikola: How to Parlay An Ocean of Lies Into a Partnership With the Largest Auto OEM in America – Hindenburg Research

hindenburgresearch.com

Here's what I said:

Steve jobs and elon musk are wankers to the highest order. But they get sht done.
They push people to achieve their goals or vision. Great at grandstanding in front of a crowd.

And that's all you need to succeed.

Here's what you said:

Really ?? If pushing people and grandstanding in front of crowd was all that was necessary then the founder of Nikola Trevor Milton would also be home and hosed. As would a number of other arch promoters and grandstanders .

I think Steve and Elon had a lot more going for them as visionaries, leaders and achievers than many other B/S story tellers.

They pushed and used the people around them.
Their power comes from their PR skills and ability to utilise the right people. The difference between Holmes and elon is fractional. Holmes would have been a success story if she had a product and partner with technical ability.

You however seem to think Jobs tinkered away himself and made the first apple computer or ipod. And elon was bent over the hood of a Tesla putting it together.
They gather cult like followers devoted to their products. They are PR spin merchants first.

Please provide a list of what Elon has invented at Tesla. They are front men. Even the hyperloop was based off something from 1799.

 

[basilio]

Moxjo, like everyone else, you are always entitled to your own particular opinion.

 

[moXJO]

Moxjo, like everyone else, you are always entitled to your own particular opinion.

Its 2020 bas, the year yesterday's heros are unmasked.