Electric-automobile maker Fisker Automotive has defaulted on a $10 million loan payment to the federal government, according to multiple new reports
2012 Fisker KarmaThe beleaguered company, based in Anaheim, Calif., is edging closer to bankruptcy.
Fisker has received $193 million in loans from the federal government through the Energy Department’s Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program.
A federal official told the Los Angeles Times that the original loan commitment was $529 million, but in 2011, as Fisker began failing to reach certain milestones set in place for progress, the federal government began to try and recoup taxpayers' money.
The government got $21 million from a reserve account, but is still owed $171 million.
Earlier this month, Fisker laid off about 75 percent of its workforce. It has hired a bankruptcy law firm, signalling that the end is likely near fro the six-yea-old car maker, founded by auto designer Henrik Fisker.
The only model the company ended up making, the Karma, is a $110,000 sports sedan that runs on an gas-electric hybrid power train, with two 150,000-watt electric motors powered from a 180-kW lithium ion battery.
Those batteries were made by A123 Systems, which filed for bankruptcy last year. Fisker has not made a Karma since.
The car can run on electricity for about 30-50 miles before its powered by a 2.0-liter, four-cylinder gasoline engine, sourced from General Motors.