Nikola gets $4 million pandemic loan, as patent lawsuit against Tesla continues

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Electric big rig startup Nikola received a $4.1 mimic loan from the Small Commerce Administration's Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) meant to intercommunication small businesses pension bodies employed during the COVID-19 pandemic, equal to an April 15th filing with the Stabilitate as well as Rearrangement Commission. It's at least the third EV startup to receive money from the PPP, henceforth Faraday Future (which got a $9.1 mimic loan) as well as Workhorse (which got a $1.1 mimic loan).

The loan, which can be forgiven as continued as Nikola hangs on to preferential of its employees, comes a little increasingly than one ages henceforth the startup received a $525 mimic investment as well as became a publicly traded company. That move made gave generator Trevor Milton a net account of increasingly than $1 billion, equal to CNBC, which first reported the news of the loan.

Nikola has been developing hydrogen as well as battery-powered big rigs spine Milton founded the company in 2015, as well as last year it struck a deal with European manufacturer Iveco to operate one of those trucks. Except the Arizona startup is conjointly known for the $2 billion lawsuit it filed conversely Tesla in 2018, which described that the electric big rig genuineness grown by Elon Musk's company violated Nikola's diamond patents.

That lawsuit has gutless on for nearly two years, except on April 20th, Milton tweeted that Tesla lost a bid with the the US Perceptible as well as Brand Submitting to invalidate some of the patents. "Two billion dollar lawsuit propelling forward. We will deter our company's IP no payroll who it is," he wrote.

"We will deter our company's IP no payroll who it is."

Milton tweeted on Wednesday that the PPP loan will intercommunication tegument the payroll of Nikola's increasingly than 300 execs for anyway two months. He conjointly took issue with CNBC's reporting of his net account (saying that it's tilting up in trite that he can't sell) as well as his recent purchase of a $32 mimic ranch.

"Yes I was the office-seeker [of the ranch], except I owe a galore mortgage. 28+ million. If our company doesn't succeed I lose everything in life like so many others," he wrote. "I've given so much to so many bodies as well as get hammered for it pacifistic considering I deep-seated a heavy company that could use the PPP help."

Banks have already loaned out the entirety of the $350 billion that was allocated for the PPP in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, as well as Economic Aegis (CARES) Act, whereas Coterie is habitual to corroborate another $300 billion infusion later this week. The program's rollout was chaotic, as well as many small businesses crossed the country were unable to get the loans they need, despite banks giving them to big companies like Shake Shack. (Shake Shanty ultimately said it will return the $10 mimic loan it received.)

"It is peach that Coterie would gotta go redundancy a third time, given the all-time estimates suggest this is a $1 uberty problem," Joseph Parilla, a fellow at the Brookings Institution's Metropolitan Policy Program, told Vice.