Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
Electric vehicle maker Lucid Motors has recently opened its first retail space in the United Arab Emirates as the Middle East region continues to gain relevance for the U.S. startup.
Amid the opening, Lucid‘s VP for the Middle East region Faisal Sultan gave an interview to the media outlet The National where he said the upcoming SUV Gravity will “eventually” arrive in UAE and Saudi Arabia markets next year.
“We’re on target to get that out this year in the US and Canada,” he said. “And then eventually next year at some time in these markets [UAE and Saudi Arabia],”.
Looking ahead, Lucid’s vice-president added that the California-based company is also eyeing other GCC [Gulf Cooperation Council] countries for future expansion. “Hopefully, in the next couple of years, other GCC countries [are] also in the plans,” he said.
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) brings together six Arab countries – Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
Sultan emphasized the importance of the region in the company’s growth strategy. “The expansion of Lucid into the UAE is a significant milestone for the company,” Sultan stated. “The region continues to build momentum in its shift towards sustainable energy, emerging as a key market in EV ownership.”
“The GCC is a core part of our strategy,” Sultan explained. “This market is all about luxury goods, so when you bring in a sustainable product into a market with a luxury angle to it, you definitely have to have the GCC and Middle East as one of your core markets.”
Lucid’s factory in Saudi Arabia, located about an hour north of Jeddah, currently has a capacity of 5,000 vehicles annually, with plans to expand to a complete build unit (CBU) plant later this decade, increasing capacity to 150,000 vehicles annually.
The CEO and CTO Peter Rawlinson has recently made bold claims about his company’s technological advancements, stating that Lucid has overtaken Tesla in the electric vehicle (EV) technology.
Rawlinson has also emphasized the company’s result in achieving five miles per kilowatt hour, a milestone he claims no other company has reached .
As recently reported by local media in South Korea, Lucid Motors is reportedly gearing up to announce a partnership providing Hyundai’s premium brand, Genesis, with electric motors.
The collaboration aims to accelerate the development of a new all-electric sports car slated for a 2025 launch by Genesis. Additionally, Hyundai plans to release the GV90, an electric sport utility vehicle from Genesis by late 2025.
Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
