Lordstown announced that its Endurance EV pickup sales started in the fourth quarter of last year. The company sold three vehicles in Q4. In a way, the company beat Tesla Cybertruck to market. However, the automaker continues to face more financial woes, widening losses in Q4.
While it is progressing with EV sales, it also has a new electric vehicles program with Foxconn. With the first three Endurance sales under its belt, Lordstown has crossed an important milestone, but the EV maker still has a long road ahead of it. Founded in 2018, Lordstown has faced a series of hurdles to get to this point. After nearly running out of money several times, and the company’s CEO and CFO abruptly resigned in 2021, the fate of the Endurance electric pickup was up in the air.
Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Foxconn threw the company a life raft, buying its Ohio plant later that year. Foxconn has stepped in multiple times since to help the young EV maker since then. After announcing it would need at least $50 to $75 million last August to ramp Endurance EV production and continue operations, Foxconn invested another $70 million to revamp the program.
Progress
Despite the cash injections, Lordstown is still facing issues getting its electric truck into customers’ hands. The company halted Endurance vehicle production last month amid a voluntary recall after finally beginning Endurance pickup sales in the fourth quarter. On its Q4 earnings Monday, Lordstown said it’s still working to resolve the issue, with additional updates expected soon.
Although Lordstown said the first batch of 500 Endurance EV trucks was leaving its Ohio plant in November, the company claims 40 of them have been completed or are in process, selling three EVs in Q4 and a total of six through February 2023. Lordstown also said, “e now have a line of sight to the resolution of the issues” and expects to announce in the “coming weeks” when it will resume production and EV deliveries. Meanwhile, Foxconn continued throwing money at the EV startup, investing up to another $170 million with an initial $52 million funded. Revenue reached $194,000 in Q4, while Lordstown’s net loss rose to $102 million. Lordstown ended the year with $221.7 million in cash and equivalents. The company expects to end the first quarter with $150 million to $170 million in funds, not including additional investments from Foxconn. Of the $50 million Foxconn investment, $30 million is being put toward a new EV program, including an electric vehicle and platform. Lordstown said, “the next platform and vehicle program are key” to the company’s long-term strategy and are becoming more of a focus.
