TESLA Competitor Nikola Motors Wins Anheuser-Busch Truck Deal

[the rifleman]

The rivalry between Nikola and Tesla is only getting hotter... figuratively speaking. Mere months after ordering 40 Tesla Semis, Anheuser-Busch has ordered "up to" 800 of Nikola's hydrogen-electric semi-trucks to introduce them into its beer-carrying fleet starting in 2020. The deal should help Anheuser-Busch convert its entire long-haul roster to renewable-based trucks by 2025 and will be equivalent to taking over 13,000 cars off the road. As to why it's not just relying on Tesla? One word: range.

Source: Anheuser

Looks like we have a showdown on our hands.

[Sableye]

its a fair point, all electric vs electric with alternate fuel boost, plugin hybrids haven't disappeared with the advent of electric vehicles with the superior range, I don't know if fuel cells are strictly the answer though but then I have a suspicion that fcs are much better behind closed doors these days where companies can be frank with investors and offer the real product.

maybe that's my cynicism from working in a trade secret heavy industry myself

[meppers]

the nikola semi is a sleeper cabin while the tesla one isn't

[Grink Of Meat]

Imagine being a great inventor and have all sorts of companies just use your name and legacy to sell their wares with.

[Humin]

Since Nikola aren't taking any money for the reservations, there also aren't any immediate expenditures. Makes it easier for people to put in reservations. Tesla on the other hand requires $20k upfront to reserve a tesla semi.
https://nikolamotor.com/two
https://www.tesla.com/teslasemi/reserve
$0.00 is a bit more easy to stomach than $16m.
On the other hand it also makes it way easier to inflate the numbers since reserving a nikola is so much easier.

[Morgen]

No company is just going to jump straight into full EV or full FCEV hauling, they will test various options and see what offers the best TCO. Plus they did reserve 40 Tesla semi's that actually requires a financial commitment as the poster above stated.

Nikola will have a hard time getting the trucks into mass production considering they have no factory, or any products.