Fisker Automotive has hired a consultant to oversee day-to-day operations in an effort to conserve cash, and may seek partner or acquisition bids next month, Bloomberg says.

Fisker spokesman Roger Ormisher says the California-based maker of the Karma extended-range plug-in luxury vehicle has brought on Huron Consulting Group, says the report. The company is also looking forward to a bidding process that may start next month, the wire service says, citing folks it didn't identify. The company has been short on cash largely because the US Energy Department last year froze about $300 million of the $529 million in loans earmarked for Fisker. Reports last month also surfaced that Fisker may owe the state of Delaware money if the company doesn't make good on making its Fisker Atlantic there.

Fisker hasn't produced any vehicles in more than six months because of a combination of factors ranging from negotiations with Swedish vendor Valmet to the bankruptcy of battery maker A123 Systems.

In related news, Wanxiang in China has received approval from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US to buy most of the assets of A123 and has expressed interest in supporting Fisker, A123's largest customer, in any way it can. Whether that includes an investment or strategic alliance remains unclear.