Fisker Furloughs Workers, Hires Bankruptcy Lawyers

The vultures are circling the headquarters of Fisker Automotive, and the clock is ticking as the signs of an inevitable bankruptcy continue to pile up. Fisker has put its more than 200 employees on furlough earlier this week, and with Chinese investors backing out, management has reportedly hired lawyers to begin bankruptcy proceedings. This is the end, my friend.

Or maybe not quite. Reuters reports that Fisker has hired “restructuring” lawyers from Kirkland & Ellis to prepare for a possible (though we say probable) bankruptcy filing. Fisker had hoped to find salvation from Chinese automakers Geely and Dongfeng, but both companies pulled out, leaving Fisker up a creek without a paddle.

Not that things were looking good for Fisker, especially after founder Henrik Fisker left the company over disagreements with management on the future of the automaker. Henrik had been pushing to downsize Fisker, which may have been the only real chance for the green car maker to survive on its own. Alas, management won that battle, but without cash, there won’t be any new cars built.

Then again, Fisker hasn’t built a car since last summer, their contract with battery maker A123 may or may not be void, and natural disasters have taken a huge chunk out of the company’s bottom line. Whether Fisker ends up liquidating, restructuring, or being bought out, things look rather bleak for this once-promising automaker.

Source: Reuters