Here's a scenario I dreamed up which might make sense:
(1) Valence has indeed produced and shipped quality batteries for several weeks or longer to OEMs, which are testing them;
(2) Smaller OEMs would like the batteries and would indeed be prepared to sign up with a "material" contract now;
(3) Company would like to initiate production with larger, bigger name customers, like IBM, Dell, HP, etc., and would not want to allocate all line 1 production to the smaller OEMs; But the company also needs some time to ramp up line 1 in order to satisfy more than 1 potential OEM customer, including the larger, targeted customer(s);
(4) Company's strategy is to continue to ramp up line 1, from 1,800 batteries per day to > 6,000 batteries per day, for example, and feels that it can do so in time not only for 1/27/99 contract with smaller OEM(s), but also with larger, target OEM(s).
(5) If larger OEM(s) don't get on board, then company will go ahead and sign with smaller OEM(s).
If Dawson feels that he has one or more potential "fallback" customers, that would explain his apparent nonchalance regarding the 1/27/99 deadline.
This is all speculation, but what the hell.... |
