Lightyear Files For Bankruptcy

Lightyear has stopped all new car production and its production company has filed for bankruptcy in the Netherlands.

By

Published

Sad news today, EV fans. Lightyear, the Dutch company that has been struggling to get a solar powered electric car into production for the past six years, asked a Dutch court for permission to stop making payments to Atlas Technologies BV, the operating company responsible for the production of the Lightyear 0. The request was approved by the court, which declared Atlas Technologies bankrupt and appointed Mr. R. van Oeijen from Holla legal & tax as trustee.

"Lightyear regrets having to make this announcement for all employees, customers, investors and suppliers and will work closely with the curator and all the people who are involved and hope for their understanding and support. In the coming period the trustee will focus on the position of the employees and creditors as well as assessing how the Lightyear concept can be continued."

The idea of using sunlight to power an electric car just seems so sensible, so logical, it's a wonder every electric car isn't covered with solar panels. But the truth is, there really isn't enough surface area on a typical automobile to mount enough solar cells to add significantly to the battery's state of charge. The Sion from Sono Motors is also a solar powered electric car that has been struggling to get into production. As of early last month, it appears that Sono too has nearly reached the end of the line and may never make it into production.

That hasn't kept backyard mechanics from bolting a few commercial solar panels to the roof of their cars and driving around the neighborhood looking for sunny places to park in. There was even a company a few years ago that began selling a solar car cover that would help replenish the battery while the car was stationary. The drawback to all these schemes, of course, is that the amount of electricity generated under the best of circumstances was barely enough to make an appreciable impact on how far the car could drive before plugging in. Life being what it is, circumstances are seldom ideal. Using sunlight to power an automobile sounds great in theory but is less than ideal in practice.

Atlas Technologies struck a deal with Valmet Automotive in Finland to start manufacturing the Lightyear 0 in December of 2022. The production rate for the $260,000 automobile was said to be one car per week. At the time, Lightyear CEO Lex Hoefsloot, said, "We have hit many milestones in recent years, from major funding achievements to great partnerships. However, today is the most significant and probably the most challenging milestone we have reached so far. Starting production of Lightyear 0, the first solar car, brings us a big step closer to our mission of clean mobility for everyone, everywhere. We may be the first to achieve this, but I certainly hope we aren't the last."

At a rate of one a week, only a few cars were produced before the company abruptly halted production so it could focus all its attention on getting the Lightyear 2 — tentatively priced at under $40,000 — into production by 2025. Previously, the company said the 2 would have a little smaller battery and a little less range than the 0, but that only meant it would take less time to charge and that it would need charging much less frequently than a traditional electric car with similar range because of the solar panels embedded in the exterior. The company said the Lightyear 2 would be offered in a variety of global markets including Europe and the United States. It was also scheduled to be manufactured by Valmet in Finland. The 2 "builds on the technology developed" for the 1 prototype the company said.

Maybe we all missed a signal when that announcement was made. Maybe going from making a quarter of a million dollar car one week to making a $40,000 car a few weeks later should have been a sign that all was not well in Lightyearland.

Lightyear said just a couple of months ago it had raised $80 million ahead of the start of Lightyear 0 production in Finland. According to Car & Driver, earlier this month the company had opened a waiting list for the Lightyear 2, which would have incorporated many technologies from the Lightyear 0. "In the coming period the trustee will focus on the position of the employees and creditors as well as assessing how the Lightyear concept can be continued," the company added.

Lightyear saw solar technology as the key to overcoming range anxiety as well as charging expenses, engineering its first model over the course of six years, to generate up to 43 miles of range per day. The sleek sedan, with a drag coefficient of 0.175 Cd, featured a relatively modest 61.2 kWh battery, though it promised an overall range of 388 miles in the WLTP cycle.

It remains to be seen whether the company, which had raised quite a bit of cash just before the production start of the $260,000 sedan, will be able to reorganize and attract more investment for its second model, or if another automaker will be willing to come to the rescue, Car & Driver reports.

The Lightyear 2 was featured at CES 2023. With an expected sales price of under $40,000, it was supposed to have a range of about 500 miles WLTP when it went into production in 2025. The firm told TechCrunch that once it opened reservations for the Lightyear 2 at CES, 40,000 individuals booked spots and companies signed up for another 20,000 cars. What happens now to those prospective orders is anyone's guess.

Autoblog sums things up this way: "As these things go, the end of the money came before the end of the dream." The car business is a stern taskmaster. The chances are the EV revolution will see a few companies with more stars in their eyes than cash in the bank go belly up over the next few years — there may even be a few well known and established companies included in the list.

Most will recall that Tesla was on the verge of going out of business at one point, with Elon Musk placing frantic phone calls to Tim Cook asking for Apple to buy out Tesla. Cook supposedly refused to respond to those calls and the rest, as they say, is history.

Thinking of creative new mobility devices is easy. Making them a reality is hard. With luck, we have not heard the last of Lightyear and its solar powered sedans.

Steve writes about the interface between technology and sustainability from his home in Florida or anywhere else The Force may lead him. He is proud to be "woke" and doesn't really give a damn why the glass broke. He believes passionately in what Socrates said 3000 years ago: "The secret to change is to focus all of your energy not on fighting the old but on building the new."

Advertise with CleanTechnica to get your company in front of millions of monthly readers.

Arcimoto, the 3-wheeled tandem-seating EV company, has been deep into financial problems and was on the brink of bankruptcy. The company had moved into...

The last year has been tough for solar-electric car companies. There are many valid reasons to be skeptical of onboard solar panels powering electric...

A combination solar powered flashlight, phone charger, and lamp with extra fold-out solar panels is handy at home and on your next EV road...

The gloves are off: solar electric cars have caught the eye of a leading international fleet operator and its high-flying parent company.