Fisker Automotive Incorporated, which is still scrambling to get its plug-in electric vehicle to market this year, has announced procurement of additional capital from private sources. The fledgling maker of plug-in electric vehicles said that it has entered into definitive agreements to receive $85 million in venture capital funding.
The financing is expected to be completed this month and will be the fourth and largest investment round since the company’s inception in August 2007. New York-based Eco-Drive (Capital) Partners LLC, a European-American investment consortium, and Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers, an early investor in Fisker and one of Silicon Valley’s most prestigious venture capital firms, have together agreed to provide the additional capital, Fisker announced.
The money will be used to further the development and manufacturing of its Karma plug-in hybrid family automobiles. The first production versions of the Fisker Karma are scheduled to roll off the assembly line in Finland later this year.
“The investment by Eco-Drive and Kleiner Perkins validates our vision of joining together the advances in technology for plug-in hybrid powertrains with the eco-chic beauty and eco-conscious comfort of the Fisker Karma. We are proud to have Eco-Drive behind us, and to see Kleiner Perkins reaffirm its confidence in our future direction,” said Henrik Fisker, Fisker Automotive CEO.
“This investment is a strong endorsement of our business s model and future product offerings in a challenging business environment,” Fisker claimed.
Fisker Automotive’s debut model, the 2010 Fisker Karma, is might be the first plug-in hybrid car to market when early production vehicles come off the assembly line late this year. The 2010 Karma is planned to retail for $87,900 before tax-payer financed and other government credits. Karma is designed to travel approximately 50 miles emission-free, powered by a lithium-ion batteries that can be charged in what’s said to be “a few hours” from any 110- or 240-volt household outlet. After 50 miles, a 2.0-liter gasoline engine runs a generator that can power the car’s electric motors for another 250 miles before refueling.
Last month, Fisker announced it has succeeded in creating a dealer network of 30 to handle the sales and servicing of its new high-tech cars, which are targeted at a relative. The solicitation for dealers attracted very strong group that promises to help the company develop in the future, according to Vince Doolan, the former BMW and Volvo executive that Fisker put in charge of the company’s dealer operations.
Fisker Automotive, founded in August 2007 by auto design house Fisker Coachbuild, LLC, and clean-powertrain developer Quantum Technologies (QTWW), is a privately owned American car company producing premium green automobiles. Future plans include a lower cost vehicle.