Saudi Arabia’s Ayar Third Investment Company, an affiliate of the Public Investment Fund (PIF) has agreed to invest $1 billion in US-listed electric vehicle makers Lucid Group.
As part of the agreement, Ayar will purchase $1.0 billion of newly created series of convertible preferred stock via private placement, subject to customary closing conditions. The PIF already holds a 60% stake in the company, as part of its strategy to diversify the Kingdom’s economy beyond oil.
“We are extremely pleased to receive this strong, continued support from the PIF, as we work to solidify our place as the world’s leading EV technology company,” said Peter Rawlinson, CEO, Lucid Group.
The luxury EV carmaker said it intends to use the proceeds for corporate purposes and capital expenditure, among other things. The company, headed by a former Tesla executive, expects to make 9,000 units in 2024, compared with the 8,428 vehicles it made last year.
Lucid is one of several EV startups hit by the slowdown in demand growth and a price war sparked by Tesla.
Lucid had said in its fourth-quarter financial presentation last month that it had sufficient liquidity “at least until 2025” and forecasted $1.5 billion in capital spending in 2024. The company had $4.8 billion in available funds at the end of 2023, including $4.3 billion in cash.
In May 2023, Lucid announced its latest capital raise of $3 billion, including a $1.8 billion investment by a PIF affiliate. In September, the automaker opened its first car manufacturing facility (AMP-2) in King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC), in Saudi Arabia. The facility will have the capacity to assemble 5,000 vehicles per annum in the first phase.