Lucid Group, a US-based electric vehicle company, has signed up Al Bawani, a leading general contracting firm, for the construction of its first international production plant in Saudi Arabia.

 

The new facility will come up on a 1.3-million-sq-m campus plot at the King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC). The new plant targets 155,000 vehicles per year.

 

Al Bawani said it has already begun work on the first phase of the plant, which will manufacture the longest range and the fastest charging electric cars in the market.

 

The company’s first car, Lucid Air, is a state-of-the-art luxury sedan with a California-inspired design that features luxurious full-size interior space in a mid-size exterior footprint. 

 

Al Bawani said this and future phases are expected to consist of many buildings across Lucid's campus at KAEC, thus creating a home for its state-of-the-art manufacutring process in the kingdom.

 

The emergence of an electric vehicle manufacturing facility in the region will accelerate the strategic objective of Saudi Arabia to transform and diversity its economy through the development of sustainable energy and transportation, underscoring the kingdom’s priority to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and shift to green and clean energy. 

 

Serving as the epicenter of electric vehicles in the region, the new plant is expected to address climate change through inspiring sustainable transportation, it added.

 

CEO Engineer Fakher Al Shawaf said: "This is a significant milestone for us at Al Bawani, partnering with Lucid to not only promote a clean and sustainable automotive ecosystem but also demonstrate our willingness and support of economic diversification efforts away from fossil fuel."

 

Underpinned by race-proven battery technology and proprietary powertrains developed entirely in-house, Lucid Air was named the 2022 MotorTrend Car of the Year. The Lucid Air Grand Touring features an official EPA estimated 516 miles of range or 1,050 horsepower.

 

"My sincere appreciation to Lucid for entrusting this opportunity to Al Bawani  and for their support of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and our broader aggressive clean energy policies," stated Al Shawaf.

 

Upon completion, the production plant is expected to offer job opportunities for several thousand people, a majority of whom are expected to be Saudi citizens.

 

Al Bawani’s partnership with Lucid hints at a broader trend of Saudi businesses’ significant shift toward initiatives that support Saudi’s Green Initiative, heralded by HRH Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to complement Vision 2030, he added.-TradeArabia News Service