EV start-up Fisker to go public through merger with Apollo-backed firm at combined value of $2.9 billion

Electric vehicle start-up Fisker is expected to go public through a merger with a company backed by private equity firm Apollo Global Management with a combined value of $2.9 billion, the companies said on Monday.

The aspiring California-based automaker will merge with Spartan Energy Acquisition, a special purpose acquisition firm. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter, officials said.

Shares of Spartan Energy surged during pre-market trading Monday to more than $20, up by about 22%.

The proposed deal is anticipated to provide Fisker the necessary funding to bring its first product, the Fisker Ocean, to production in late 2022.

The deal mirrors that of all-electric vehicle start-up Nikola, which went public last month through a reverse merger with VectoIQ, another publicly-traded special purpose acquisition company.

Fisker is led by well-known auto designer Henrik Fisker, who has been promising to bring a new all-electric vehicle to market for several years. He first promised a luxury sedan to rival the Tesla Model S before switching gears to the Ocean, a mainstream crossover. The sedan, according to the company’s website, remains in its plans but there’s no set launch date.

Fisker is credited with designing the BMW Z8 and Aston Martin DB9. He previously launched a company with the same name that brought a plug-in hybrid vehicles to market called the Karma. The company went bankrupt in 2013. Wanxiang Group, a Chinese firm, purchased the company’s assets but Fisker retained the company’s name.

Cowen, Credit Suisse and Goldman Sachs are serving as co-placement agents on the private investment in public equity offering.