Lucid cars have been gaining increasing popularity in recent years. The company has also gone through major changes recently, which has naturally confused its customers about where its manufacturing facilities are located.
Lucid cars were initially manufactured in a facility in Arizona. However, since September 2023, Lucid Motors has launched a second manufacturing facility in Saudia Arab, where they are currently training the local employees and have assembled up to 800 EV cars.
Continue reading below to find out more about lucid cars and where they are manufactured.
What Is Lucid Motors?
Lucid Motors has received numerous comparisons to Tesla—and this is no coincidence; several high-ranking employees at Lucid previously worked for Tesla. Peter Rawlinson, the current CEO of the company, was himself an engineer who had previously worked on the Tesla Model S. The exact details of his involvement at Tesla and whether his contributions were substantial or not have long been a matter of debate.
However, it is clear that Rawlinson does not intend for Lucid Motors to compete with Tesla; instead, he aims for the company to dominate the luxury EV car market. The company was initially established as a battery company under the name Atieva; however, this name was soon changed.
After much brainstorming, the business settled on the more distinctive and marketable Lucid as it repositioned itself as an electric vehicle manufacturer. The founders of Lucid Motors had substantial knowledge of EV batteries and powertrain technology, which allowed them to get off to a strong start once they started working on their own EV cars. The firm had also previously manufactured batteries for Formula E race cars.
This is why the Lucid Air is, without a doubt, one of the best range-and-performance-packed electric vehicles on the market. The company’s goal is to create the finest electric vehicle available for purchase, and it intends never to stop inventing. It aims to carve out its own niche and produce superior electric vehicles compared to all of its competitors, including Tesla.
Where are Lucid Cars Made?
Lucid Motors is a publicly listed electric vehicle company based in the United States and traded on the Nasdaq exchange. Lucid cars are designed in Newark, California, while the manufacturing facility is located in Casa Grande, Arizona. In 2022, Lucid introduced its first car, the Lucid Air sedan.
On September 17, 2018, Lucid Motors announced that it was in discussions with the Public Investment Fund, which is the Saudi Arabian sovereign investment fund, to obtain funding of over one billion dollars.
Lucid launched their second production factory in Saudi Arabia in September 2023, with an initial capacity to make 5,000 electric vehicles annually. This was in response to the Saudi government’s commitment to purchase up to 100,000 vehicles from Lucid over the course of ten years. By the end of that year, Lucid Group had trained over 200 local workers at its Saudi Arabian plant and had assembled nearly 800 automobiles.
The second Advanced Manufacturing Plant (AMP-2) facility that Lucid built received major backing from the Ministry of Investment of Saudi Arabia (MISA), the Saudi Industrial Development Fund (SIDF), and the Economic City at King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC).
This manufacturing plant is expected to play a key part in contributing to Saudi Arabia’s strategic goal of diversifying its economy. Lucid is also committed to supporting the Saudi Green Initiative’s objective to ensure that 30 percent of all new automobile sales in the Kingdom are electric by the year 2030.
The strategic position of the facility in close proximity to Jeddah will also serve as an opportunity for further development and growth of the recently formed domestic supply chain. This will increase demand for local suppliers and will promote growth over the long run.
Based on its strategic location on the Red Sea coast, Jeddah provides excellent land and sea access for Lucid’s supply chain, allowing the company to potentially export its finished premium electric vehicles to other regions.
Who is the Owner of Lucid Motors?
Although Lucid has attracted a significant number of investors throughout the years, the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia is the biggest shareholder of the American company. The first agreement with the PIF, which was worth more than one billion dollars, made it possible for Lucid to launch their firm and construct the Lucid Air in the manner that they had envisioned it.
However, a large number of people have voiced their disapproval of the company’s ties with the Saudi government due to Saudi Arabia’s dismal track record in terms of human rights issues. Keeping in mind that the Saudi Private Investment Fund is the primary stakeholder in Lucid, the problem is that Lucid is not in a position to take a stance on any matters relating to the Saudi government.
How Much Does Lucid Cost Compared to Tesla?
Over the course of its history, Tesla has produced a lineup of automobiles that range in price from being within a reasonable budget (for example, the Model 3 sedan, which costs $40,000) to being outright expensive (for example, the Model S Plaid, which costs over six figures).
On the other hand, the entry-level Lucid, the Air Pure, costs $87,400, making it a clear luxury competitor. When it comes to the Air Sapphire, a speed monster with an incredible amount of power, the price of the model goes all the way up to $249,000. As the price may suggest, Lucid is all about delivering a high level of luxury, performance, and technology, and it does not fail to deliver on any of these fronts.
Conclusion
Lucid Motors aims to be the pioneer in luxury EV cars, and it seems to be headed in the right direction with its two manufacturing plants located in both Arizona and Saudi Arabia. The location of its second plant in Saudi Arabia is strategic, allowing it to boost revenue and provide it with the ideal route for importing its vehicles to other regions.
