Faraday Future could crumble ‘if CES goes badly’, Lucid ramps up
If new reports are to be believed, next month's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas could be the make-or-break moment for electric vehicle startup Faraday Future.
Having revealed nothing more to-date than a sleek futuristic concept, the company has already been declared by some on social media to be a questionable prospect.
The company launched onto the global stage, this time last year, when it announced plans for a $1.4 billion factory in the US - funded by Chinese entrepreneur Jia Yueting.
The potential Tesla rival revealed its Batmobile-like FFZERO1 concept in January, promising that the next time we saw a Faraday Future unveiling, it would represent a genuine passenger car launch.
However, reports in recent weeks suggest the company has run into financial troubles, with factory construction contractor AECOM confiding to website Jalopnik that works had halted while Faraday Future reviewed its position.
Worse, industry journal Automotive News and business paper Bloomberg had both confirmed evidence of cashflow problems.
This week, Jalopnik and The Financial Times have reported on communications from unnamed sources, suggesting that things may go badly for the company if it fails to impress at CES next month.
“If CES goes badly, it’s all over. It will be a long while before there is a production car," an alleged former employee told The Financial Times.
Jalopnik claims to have received a message from an insider, saying: “Don’t expect to see as much as you’d like at CES".
Watch for more on Faraday Future's future to surface in the weeks ahead.
Lucid future clearing up?
Elsewhere, former EV supplier Atieva turned EV manufacturing startup Lucid has announced plans of its own for a factory in the US state of Arizona.
A $945 million investment, construction of Lucid's plant is scheduled to begin in 2017, ahead of a planned start date for production of its first model set for 2018.
Lucid claims that by 2022, it will have over 2000 full-time workers building cars in Arizona.
You can watch Lucid's plant announcement here on the company's YouTube page.
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