Lucid signs supply agreement with LG Chem
Lucid Motors has signed a long-term supply contract with LG Chem. The contract covers the supply of LG Chem battery cells for the standard version of the Lucid Air electric sedan until 2023.
Series production of the first Lucid Motors model is scheduled to begin at the end of this year in Casa Grande, Arizona USA. The exact battery capacity of the production model is not yet known. At the beginning of February, Lucid CEO Peter Rawlinson stated in an interview that the Air is to be given a smaller battery than the initially announced 130 kWh due to efficiency improvements achieved in the meantime. One thing is clear: A smaller battery is also lighter and cheaper.
Lucid Motors has not released further details about the LG Chem batteries or the scope of the delivery. Needless to say, the reliable supply of batteries is a key element in the production of electric cars. Weak links along the battery production and supply chains can change production schedules, as Audi and Jaguar, among others, are currently experiencing.
Lucid says that with the “advanced battery cells from LG Chem” it is now possible to “lock-in core volume production forecasts for the Lucid Air for the next several years”. Rawlinson confirmed, “The agreement with LG Chem puts Lucid on the best possible path to production for the Lucid Air, ensuring the necessary energy density and cell availability to fulfil our promise of class-leading range to consumers.”
The LG cells are intended for the standard version of the Air. The company says they select the best battery cell for each version of the Air based on its own extensive performance tests – in the case of the standard version, LG Chem’s cells would have provided “the ideal efficiency”. Later versions with smaller or larger batteries could use the cells from another supplier – as Tesla apparently does with the Chinese version of the Model 3, but also Audi with the e-tron Sportback.
The production model of the Lucid Air with the final technical data and the final design is to be presented at the New York Autos Show in April. Then the company will also announce the prices for its debut model.
With reporting by Sebastian Schaal, Germany.
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