Lucid will sell up to 100,000 EVs to the Saudi government

Luxury EV maker Lucid Group has struck a deal to sell the government of Saudi Arabia up to 100,000 vehicles over the next ten years, it announced. The kingdom's Ministry of Finance will buy at least 50,000 Air sedans and upcoming models from now until 2032, with an option to buy another 50,000 over the same period. 

Saudi Arabia's public wealth fund invested $1 billion in Lucid in 2018 and owns a 62 percent stake in the company. The order will include vehicles from Lucid's existing Arizona factory and a new one planned for Saudi Arabia. It'll start next year with sales between 1,000 and 2,000 vehicles annually and ramp up to 4,000-7,000 per year in 2025, according to Lucid. 

Lucid recently launched its first vehicle into production, the $169,000 Air Dream Edition Performance sedan with 1,111 horsepower and 450 miles of range. The Air Grand Touring model will show up later for $139,000, followed by the $95,000 Air Touring and finally the base, sub-$80,000 Air. However, prices will also include “logistics and importation costs, and other costs of delivering and homologating vehicles to regulations of Saudi Arabia,” according to Lucid. 

“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,” said Lucid CEO Peter Rawlinson. 

However, as part of those initiatives, the kingdom also plans to continue drilling for oil in what it calls a “circular carbon economy.” Critics have slammed that as greenwashing, citing recent UN reports stating that “time is running out” and that fossil fuel development is “dangerously out of sync” with climate change targets.