April 4 (Reuters) - Nikola ( NKLA ) surpassed estimates

for deliveries of its hydrogen big rigs in the first quarter, a

sign it was making progress in its pivot to the technology from

battery electric trucks after some missteps that battered its

share price.

The electric truck maker said on Thursday it has delivered

40 vehicles in the first quarter, compared with the 30 units

estimated by a consensus of four analysts polled by Visible

Alpha.

The company produced 43 trucks in the three months to March

31 and said the remaining hydrogen big rigs in its inventory at

the end of the quarter were set for delivery in early April.

Nikola ( NKLA ) in February set a target to deliver as many as 350

hydrogen-powered fuel cell electric trucks in 2024 and said it

had delivered 35 units in the fourth quarter.

The company had said it would return all battery-powered

trucks to customers by early third quarter after resolving an

issue that caused coolant leaks in the battery pack leading to

fires.

It had also said it was on track to return its first

re-worked battery electric trucks to customers by the end of the

first quarter.

Shares of the company were 8% higher in premarket trading,

after having lost more than 90% of their value since going

public in 2020.