Arrival, a UK-based electric car company, revealed that its “microfactory” in southern England has created its first production verification vehicle. The announcement comes as the business is purportedly in discussions to secure funds to produce and sell electric automobiles in the United States.
The electric vehicle was built using “in-house technology such as composite materials, autonomous mobile robots, in-house components, and a software-defined factory,” according to the business. The achievement validates Arrival’s microfactory model, which consists of highly automated small-footprint facilities where the company aims to construct its cars.
It’s a significant milestone for Arrival, which went public in March 2021 after combining with a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC. Arrival, founded in 2015, is developing electric delivery vans for UPS as well as ride-hailing vehicles for Uber and municipal buses. Hyundai and Kia are also on board.
However, it has not been an altogether smooth voyage. According to Sverdlov, the business will miss its third-quarter objective of beginning serial production for the vehicle due to supply chain interruptions and “production hell.”
According to Bloomberg, Arrival is planning to construct numerous micro-factories in the United States in order to comply with the newly modified EV tax incentives, which require cars to be manufactured in North America. It will take a lot more money to make that happen, with Sverdlov predicting that a facility would cost $50 million, plus another $50 million for operating capital.
Due to the liquidity constraint, Arrival has had to restructure its business, cutting its employees and postponing expenditure on its bus project. The firm is one of several EV companies that went public by combining with SPAC in order to access massive amounts of money that have been accessible in recent years.
However, the traditional car industry has started to catch up, with electric commercial vehicles from General Motors and Ford, as well as new entrants like Rivian, which is financed by Amazon, emerging.
