Lordstown names new CEO

Electric carmaker Lordstown Motorson July 12 named an internal executive and auto industry veteran Edward Hightower to replace its chief executive, a management shake-up aimed at further advancing its business, startingProduction of electric pickup truck models.

Hightower, who has been the company's president since last November, will succeed Daniel Ninivaggi as CEO, who will serve as the company's executive president and focus on building partnerships and capital raising.

Hightower, a former executive at Ford and GM, took over as CEO at a pivotal time in Lordstown's growth, and the only four-year-old business plans to start partnering with Foxconn to produce its Endurance pickup in the third quarter of this year.

Image credit: Lordstown

Danni Hewson, an analyst at brokerage AJ Bell, said Hightower has some experience in car manufacturing and having an engineer as CEO could give Lordstown an advantage.

While global demand for electric vehicles is surging, supply chain disruptions and rising material costs make it difficult for companies to ramp upproductionand meet market demand.Lordstown also ran into funding problems, with the company having to sell some of its assets to Taiwanese company Foxconn in May to secure the funds necessary for production.

The company was also targeted by short-seller Hindenburg Research last year, leading to an internal investigation by the company and further the resignation of its then-CEO and CFO.

In a July 12 statement, Lordstown also named Donna Bell, a former Ford executive with nearly three decades of experience in automotive product development, as its executive vice president of product innovation, engineering and supply chain.In addition, Jane Ritson-Parsons, who has been its chief commercial officer since November last year, will serve as an advisor to the company.