Fisker sold out two trim levels destined for the United States for its Fisker Ocean SUV: the $37,499 Fisker Ocean Sport and the $49,999 Fisker Ocean Ultra. Last month, Fisker sold out of the $68,999 Fisker Ocean One limited edition globally, securing $5,000 deposits from 5,000 reservation holders in just 30 days.
Starting on November 18, 2022, the day after start of production, Fisker will begin taking orders for the Fisker Ocean Extreme in select global launch markets, followed by opening orders for the Ultra and Sport trims in Q1 2023 for other launch markets outside the US.
In preparation for the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA), Fisker began reaching out to US reservation holders on August 7. Fisker offered reservation holders the opportunity to proactively enter into a binding contract to purchase a Fisker Ocean by converting their $250 initial deposit and $100 second deposit to a non-refundable order. Fisker believes this binding contract enables the customer to retain eligibility for a $7,500 federal tax credit for EVs that becomes unavailable if the IRA is signed into law.
This ordering system remains in effect only until the IRA is passed and signed into law or is otherwise finally decided. At that time, this order process will close. As mentioned above, Fisker plans to reopen the order process for the Fisker Ocean Extreme trim on November 18, 2022.
“We moved quickly to preserve the opportunity of our qualifying US reservation holders to remain eligible for the current federal tax credit,” Fisker chairman and CEO Henrik Fisker said. “We’re very happy that, in addition to global Fisker Ocean One customers securing their vehicles, those reservation holders in the US who wanted a Fisker Ocean could lock in their purchase commitment. Our customers are giving us a huge vote of confidence ahead of our start of production on November 17. As for 2024, we are already exploring US-based manufacturing with the goal of making some models eligible for the EV tax credit within the new proposed requirements.”
Fisker said it is in discussions with its production partner Magna, examining the possibility of increasing production of the Fisker Ocean in the second half of 2023, potentially releasing more Fisker Ocean Ultra and Sport trims for the US market toward the end of 2023.
In the meantime, Henrik visited Magna Steyr’s carbon-neutral factory in Austria this week, where preparations are well underway to begin manufacturing the Fisker Ocean in November. He reviewed developments at the main assembly line, where a ramp-up to higher-volume production will commence in 2023. A highlight was a fully automated, robotic battery-vehicle marriage station, where 26 bolts are fastened in less than two minutes, securing the battery pack into place in the undercarriage.
Henrik also reviewed a group of pre-production prototype vehicles for technicians to conduct additional testing.
With fewer than 99 days to go before the start of production, Magna and Fisker established a “Mission Control” center where teams meet daily to ensure the highest quality manufacturing. Additional teams are working on logistics for parts coming into the plant, vehicle handovers, port operations, and outbound logistics to manage customer deliveries in nine launch markets.
