Aug. 4 (UPI) -- Phoenix-based net-zero transportation company Nikola said Friday that its CEO Michael Lohscheller will step down immediately, to be replaced by board chairman Steve Girsky.
Nikola said Lohscheller resigned because of a family health issue and is moving to Europe. He'll remain on in an advisory capacity through September.
"The board respects Michael's decision to be with his family during this time and thanks him for his hard work, dedication, and contributions to Nikola," Girsky said. "I am grateful for all that Michael was able to accomplish to move our company forward during his tenure."
Lohscheller was behind a doubling in retail sales in its battery-electric truck during the first half of the year and backed the launch of a truck powered by a hydrogen fuel cell. Total revenue, however, took a downturn.
Related
The company reported $15.3 million in total revenue during the second quarter of the year, some $3 million lower than during the same period last year.
It reported a 35% decline in total vehicles produced relative to the second quarter last year, though total shipments declined only by 6.25% from last year.
The company added that it completed an expansion to a plant for battery and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in Arizona during the second quarter. Current production capacity is 2,400 vehicles per year, provided the plant is running on three shifts for the entire year.
"Since Nikola's inception, I have been a champion of its mission," Girsky added. "I am energized to take on this role and build upon the work of Michael and the team."
Nikola, once seen as a rival to Tesla, agreed in December 2021 to pay $125 million to settle federal charges that it defrauded investors after federal prosecutors charged Nikola founder and former CEO Trevor Milton with securities and wire fraud and making false statements about the company.
The accusations say Milton embarked on "a public relations campaign aimed at inflating and maintaining Nikola's stock price" before it had even produced a single vehicle.
"Nikola Corporation is responsible both for Milton's allegedly misleading statements and for other alleged deceptions, all of which falsely portrayed the true state of the company's business and technology," Gurbir Grewal, director of the Securities and Exchange Commission's enforcement division, said in a statement.
Nikola at the time said it was pleased to bring the chapter to a close. The settlement meant the company neither acknowledged nor denied the allegations of fraud.
