Hopefully, this will solve the automaker's production woes.
Lucid's Casa Grande production facility in Arizona is poised for growth in the coming months, as the all-electric carmaker is expected to expand its factory in the coming years. According to teslarati.com, Lucid will lease an additional 1,400 acres of land from Pinal County, which recently acquired the extra real estate from 14 surrounding properties for $113.5 million.
Lucid's plant currently measures around 600 acres, and if all goes according to plan, the expansion will see Lucid sitting with 2,000 acres. Aside from the possible creation of 6,000 new jobs, this development should do wonders for the company's production capabilities.
Construction at the AMP-1 facility is expected to commence in 2023 and could take as long as two years to complete. Documents seen by the publication indicate the project could extend well into 2025.
Lucid has been actively upgrading its AMP-1 facility since 2020, when the company announced phase two of the expansion. This saw the construction and completion of key areas, such as the assembly building and stamping plant. The third phase of the project is expected to add a Customer Experience Center.
However, it's safe to assume the company will also expand its production facilities in order to meet demand. CEO Peter Rawlinson has said the company currently has more than 37,000 reservations. Earlier this year, Lucid said it had to reduce its production outlook from the planned 20,000 units to 12,000-14,000 units. However, the company likely won't reach that goal and is expected to manufacture 6,000-7,000 vehicles.
Aside from the planned Casa Grande expansion, Lucid Motors has also expressed a desire to establish a facility in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. According to the company, the new factory in Saudi Arabia could "result in up to $3.4 billion of value" for the company in the next 15 years.
If all goes according to plan, the international manufacturing hub is expected to produce 150,000 vehicles a year. The company is reportedly aiming for the Arizona factory to pump out 400,000 vehicles per annum, which would put the automaker's production issues to rest - chip crisis permitting, of course.
Demand for the Air luxury sedan remains strong and should only grow now that the high-performance Sapphire variant has been introduced. With more than 1,200 horsepower on tap, the rapid electric sedan is set to give the Tesla Model S Plaid a black eye; the automaker claims a 0-60-mph time of under two seconds.
Of course, this comes at a price - $249,000 before options, to be exact. Despite this, we expect the orders to roll in and hope Lucid can make good on its promises. At the current production rates, current reservations will only be satisfied in five or so years. Customers won't wait that long for a car, so we won't be surprised if the planned expansion centers around boosting production to a more respectable figure.
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