Luxury electric vehicle (EV) maker Lucid Motors and special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Churchill Capital Corp IV (CCIV) are planning a merger to go public.
“Lucid is proud to be leading a new era of high-technology, high-efficiency zero-emission transportation. Through a ground-up rethinking of how EVs are designed, our in-house-developed, race-proven technology and meticulous engineering have enabled industry-leading powertrain efficiency and new levels of performance,” Peter Rawlinson, CEO and CTO of Lucid, said in a press release on Monday (Feb. 22).
CCIV and Lucid are combining at a transaction equity value of $11.75 billion. The transaction values Lucid at an initial pro-forma equity value of approximately $24 billion at the PIPE offer price of $15 per share. The deal will give Lucid roughly $4.4 billion in cash, assuming no existing CCIV shares are redeemed for cash at closing.
Rawlinson said Lucid is going public to speed up this year’s launch of its new all-electric luxury sedan, Lucid Air, with plans to roll out Gravity, its high-performance luxury SUV, in 2023. Funding will also be used to expand the company’s Arizona factory, which is the first greenfield purpose-built EV manufacturing facility in North America. The facility is also already operational for pre-production builds of the Lucid Air. The facility has a three-phase expansion plan in place that will have the capacity to make approximately 365,000 vehicles annually.
He added that the new funding will also be used to realize “our vision to supply Lucid’s advanced EV technologies to third parties such as other automotive manufacturers as well as offer energy storage solutions in the residential, commercial and utility segments.”
Lucid expects the higher performance level of its vehicles, combined with enhanced efficiency, will be attractive to both customers and investors committed to a zero-emission future. The company said it uses “differentiated, proprietary EV technology,” including its battery technology, “which is currently powering every vehicle in the world’s leading EV racing series, is underpinned by a rich portfolio of patents.”
Lucid’s EV technology was developed in-house. Lucid Air is projected to go about 500 miles on a single charge.
Michael Klein, chairman and CEO of CCIV, said, “CCIV believes that Lucid’s superior and proven technology backed by clear demand for a sustainable EV make Lucid a highly attractive investment for Churchill Capital Corp IV shareholders, many of whom have an increased focus on sustainability.”
Lucid first announced last week that it was seeking a SPAC merger with Churchill Capital Corp IV.
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