Lucid Motors factory in Casa Grande, Arizona will build electric cars. No plans for autonomous cars have been announced.

Another E-Vehicle Company Prepares to Join the Crowded Field

Last January Lucid Motors announced it was breaking ground in Casa Grande, Arizona on a new electric vehicle manufacturing plant. That was huge news for the Phoenix Metro area and beyond. Here is what they said:

Local officials in Arizona expect thousands of construction jobs, permanent jobs and millions of dollars in tax revenues when Lucid Motors’ advanced car-manufacturing facility opens in Casa Grande, midway between Phoenix and Tucson in Pinal County. When completed, the company will begin production of the electric-powered Lucid Air luxury sedan, says Andrew Hussey, a spokesperson for the Newark, Calif.-based start-up.

Founded in 2007, Lucid expects to spend more than $700 million on its Arizona campus by the mid-2020s, following a recent $1-billion investment from the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia.

“The Lucid Air is a cutting-edge electric vehicle designed, engineered and destined for manufacture entirely in America,” says Peter Rawlinson, Lucid’s CEO and CTO.

The first phase of construction has been completed at Lucid Motors’ new electric vehicle plant in Casa Grande, south of Phoenix, and company officials say they’re on track to begin production there in early 2021. An investment of $300-plus million on a 500-acre site at Peters and Thornton roads was started in 2020.

The Newark, California-based company said the Lucid AMP-1, or advanced manufacturing plant, is the first greenfield, dedicated electric vehicle factory to be built in North America.

With the 999,000-square-foot first phase finished, Lucid is now working to put equipment and processes in place to begin producing the Lucid Air luxury electric sedan.

Lucid has said it expects an estimated $32 billion revenue impact for Casa Grande and Pinal County over a 20-year period.

Lucid expects a huge hiring surge. 

With a 400-mile range and 0–60-mph performance in a brisk 2.5 seconds, the mid-size Lucid Air vehicles will sell for $100,000-plus. A lower-priced model in the $65,000 range also is planned.

read more at cnet.com