- Ten-year deal marks one of the largest-ever commitments for electric vehicles.
- Agreement aims to reduce carbon emissions and diversify the economy under the Vision 2030 plan.
- Planned Lucid factory in Saudi Arabia supports PIF's strategy to localize the automotive sector.
The Saudi government has announced an agreement with the PIF-backed automaker Lucid to purchase up to 100,000 electric vehicles over a ten-year period, SPA reported.
The agreement is intended to diversify the government's fleet of vehicles, bring more innovative technologies to play in the transport sector, reduce carbon emissions, and diversify the Saudi economy under the aims of the Vision 2030 plan, SPA reported.
The purchase of between 50,000 and 100,000 vehicles will include the Lucid Air and future models, and stands as one of the largest-ever purchase commitments of its kind for electric vehicles (EVs).
“Delivering up to 100,000 Lucid electric vehicles in Saudi Arabia represents another pivotal moment in our acceleration of sustainable transportation worldwide," said Peter Rawlinson, Lucid's CEO. “We are delighted to be supporting Saudi Arabia in achieving its sustainability goals and net zero ambitions, as outlined by Saudi Vision 2030 and the Saudi Green Initiative, by bringing our advanced luxury EVs to Saudi Arabia."
In 2018, PIF singed an investment agreement with Lucid Motors worth more than $1 billion. In February, Lucid said it had inked a deal to open a manufacturing plant in King Abdullah Economic City outside Jeddah, in what would be the company's first site outside the US.
This supports PIF's strategy of localizing the automotive sector within Saudi Arabia, as well as boosting the number of direct and indirect jobs created to 1.8 million by the end of 2025.
As part of the agreement with the Saudi government, vehicles will be assembled at Lucid's existing Arizona factory and its future facility in Saudi Arabia. The order quantity is expected to range from 1,000 to 2,000 vehicles annually and increase to between 4,000 and 7,000 vehicles annually starting in 2025, Lucid said.
