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Lucid Motors is in talks with the Saudi Public Investment Fund to build an electric car plant near the Red Sea city of Jeddah, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke with “Bloomberg” and commented on by “Al Arabiya.net “
Saudi Arabia is seeking to become a center in the Middle East for making electric vehicles at a time when its economy is diversifying from oil.
The sources said that the Public Investment Fund, which is already a shareholder in the “Lucid” company, will provide the necessary financing for the King Abdullah Economic City plant site, indicating that plans are at an advanced stage but could change. Manufacture in the north-west of the Kingdom.
Lucid is one of several US companies looking to compete with Tesla as the startup targets the luxury side of the electric car market, with CEO Peter Rawlinson as Tesla’s chief engineer on the Model S sedan.
Lucid raised more than $ 1 billion from the Public Investment Fund in 2018, an investment that was conditional on the development of a site in Saudi Arabia by the company. King Abdullah Economic City is located approximately 97 kilometers north of Jeddah, the second largest city in Saudi Arabia.
Lucid has announced plans to start production of a $ 169,000 sedan capable of traveling over 500 miles (805 kilometers) on a single charge. It has also built a plant in the Arizona desert, and deliveries to US customers of this model are expected to begin in the second quarter.
Lucid also plans to produce a cheaper $ 75,000 version of the sedan in 2022, which will be able to travel over 400 miles on a single charge, and possibly build an SUV.
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