Show us the money: $150 million needed for Fisker Atlantic development

With a lot riding on Fisker's next mode, the Atlantic, it appears the company will need to find $150 million before it can get things off the ground.

If you haven’t been keeping pace, Fisker recently announced the appointment of its new CEO Tony Posawatz. Coming from General Motors, the newly appointed chief is no stranger to the green car scene, having been instrumental in the development of the Chevrolet Volt and enjoying a career that spanned 32 years.

Of course, jumping from GM to Fisker Automotive will be no easy task for Posawatz, and it appears the new boss already has an uphill battle on his hands. He will be charged with steering the company out of murky waters and part of that plan will include successfully generating the funds needed for the  eye-catching  Fisker Atlantic plug-in hybrid, which debuted just ahead of the  New York Auto Show last earlier this year. According to recent Reuters report, Poswatz will be tasked with ensuring the company is able to generate the requisite $150 million needed to begin production on the Atlantic.

Evidently, though there seems to be a lot riding on the bolstering of its finances, with one of Fisker’s key investors telling Reuters that strengthening the company’s financial position is crucial not only for covering the operating expenses of the new model, but for the development of future products in the pipeline as well.

Despite the fact that California-based auto start-up has managed to build some rather handsome vehicles with both the Karma and now the Atlantic, it’s no secret that Fisker is going through a seemingly endless  rough patch. The beleaguered automaker’s run of bad luck extends not only to the Fisker Karma, which can’t seem to stop mysteriously catching fire,  its A123 systems supplied batteries, the poor taste of some of its owners, and what has always been an issue in the background: its finances. No doubt Fisker’s financial woes stem from many of the  setbacks and problems it had to deal with along the development process, but perhaps most hard hitting was losing more than half of its $529 million loan from the Department of Energy.

Still, the company is looking to persevere despite its difficulties and has stated it will seek out private funding in order to enhance its financial position. With Posawatz at the helm, Fisker will undoubtedly hope to put the issues surrounding its batteries and finances firmly in its rearview. According to company documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Fisker has raised $1.01 billion from more than 100 private investors over the past five years. 

Source : digitaltrends[dot]com