Tesla Competitor, Lucid Motors, Confirms Luxury EV Production In Arizona

In January 2017, Lucid Motors announced plans of breaking ground on Casa Grande for their assembly plant, but lack of funding has impeded the production of their luxury sedan until an announcement the company made last week.

After almost three years, the Tesla competitor has finally confirmed that the local Planning and Zoning Commission of the Arizona city approved its multi-year site plan on Nov. 6. Land grading has already begun in September, and the company estimates that production will start before the end of 2020.

The land the Lucid Motors secured is a 500-acre site that's purchased by Pinal Country for $29.4 million by way of bond issues, and it's leased to the startup company for $1.8 million per year. The estimate for the plant the company plans to construct is about $700 million. The figures were reported by the Silicon Valley Business Journal.

Atieva, the parent company of Lucid, couldn't get the funding to get Lucid Air, the premier electric vehicle (EV) that the company unveiled back in 2016, in the line of production. But with a $1 billion investment from Saudi Arabia through the kingdom's sovereign wealth fund in 2018, issues concerning its eventual roll-out dissolved.

Lucid Air claimed to have a range of 400 miles with a top speed of 200 mph. It can also accelerate up to 60 mph from a dead stop. The EV rivals the Tesla Model S with an interior that boasts more of a luxury feel than the Tesla. So far, it's the only model that the company developed.

“We have a plan for future models in mind, and we can hopefully be in a position to clarify that plan later this year,” Chief Technology Officer Peter Rawlins told The Verge.

“Certainly, with Lucid Air platform, we have a platform that is ideally suited for more vehicles than just the Air. And, of course, we want to exploit that.”

The Lucid Air price will range from $60,000 to $100,000.

In July, Lucid Motors hired a former vice president of production for Tesla, Peter Hochholdinger. Hochholdinger will take on the role of vice president of manufacturing for Lucid Motors.