Electric Fisker Ocean production begins in Austria

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A former designer for Aston Martin, BMW and Ford, Henrik Fisker, realised his life’s ambition on November 17 when series production of the all-electric Fisker Ocean SUV began at the Magna Steyr plant in Graz, Austria which also produces the BMW Z4 and Toyota Supra.

It’s a legitimate attempt by Fisker to build a mass production electric vehicle. His foray into EV production nine years ago with the Karma sports car bankrupted his then company Fisker Automotive.

According to Bloomberg News global automotive editor Craig Trudell it is with the backing from a private equity firm in a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) that California-based Fisker Inc was able to go public and raise funds needed to make the Ocean a reality.

Trudell says Fisker Inc has invested much of its capital into contracts with Magna Steyr for production, Magna International for components, and has locked in battery cell production with Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd (CATL).  

Fisker Inc says it is holding more than 63,000 orders for the Ocean SUV which will be available in two trim levels.

It says the dual electric motor all-wheel-drive Fisker Ocean Extreme has a range of up to 560km, and offers a 17 inch rotating HMI gaming screen, SolarSky roof, California mode and digital radar from US$69,000.

Fisker Inc will also offer a limited 5000 unit production run of the Ocean ONE which builds on the specification of the Extreme, and will offer specific cues says the company. Fisker Inc says the Ocean sold out in 30 days in June 2022 and each was secured by a US$5000 deposit which equates to a potential revenue of US$350 million upon customer delivery.

According to Fisker Inc, production of the Ocean SUV at the Magna Steyr facility will ramp up from more than 300 units in the first quarter of 2023 to more than 8,000 units in the second quarter. 

In the third quarter of 2023 Fisker Inc says Magna Steyr will produce 15,000 cars and end the fourth quarter with more than 42,000 units built.