Nikola shares fall after EV maker recalls all of its battery-electric semitrucks following a fire

Shares of electrical motortruck shaper Nikola opened sharply little Monday aft the institution announced a callback of each the battery-electric semitrucks it has made to day — 209 successful full — aft an probe into a caller occurrence recovered a flaw.

Shares were down astir 11% successful mid-morning trading Monday to astir $1.75 each.

The recalls bash not impact Nikola's latest model, a semitruck powered by a hydrogen substance cell. Production of the substance compartment trucks began past month.

Nikola said precocious Friday that a third-party probe recovered that a coolant leak wrong a artillery battalion was apt liable for a occurrence successful a motortruck parked astatine the company's Phoenix office connected June 23. That occurrence dispersed to different adjacent trucks, destroying five.

Nikola had primitively suspected that the trucks were deliberately acceptable connected occurrence successful an enactment of vandalism. It present believes that "foul play oregon different outer factors were improbable to person caused the incident," it said successful its Friday nighttime statement.

A 2nd motortruck utilized by the company's engineering squad had a akin battery-pack malfunction connected Aug. 10, though the occupation was caught earlier it became a large fire, Nikola said.

Following the third-party report, Nikola's ain engineers determined that a constituent successful the artillery pack, manufactured by an extracurricular supplier, is the apt culprit. It expects to person a repair disposable soon.

The institution is halting income of its battery-electric trucks until the repair is available.

Nikola is remotely monitoring each of its battery-electric trucks for signs of a akin defect. Although the institution said it believes the hazard is debased — lone 2 artillery packs retired of implicit 3,100 made person had the problem, it noted — it advised operators that portion they tin proceed to usage the trucks, the trucks should beryllium parked extracurricular until the repair is made.