Photo: Lucid
Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund is lending more money to the American electric-car maker it has backed for years, betting that a leaner company can survive long enough to launch a cheaper model.
The fund has agreed to expand a loan facility to Lucid Group by $1.75 billion, the company said in a filing on Monday alongside its third-quarter results.
The money is a delayed-draw loan, so Lucid can pull it down in stages as it needs cash rather than all at once.
Why it matters
Lucid still spends far more than it earns. The new credit takes its available liquidity to $3.75 billion, which the company says is enough to fund operations and key investments into the fourth quarter of 2027.
That window is meant to carry Lucid to the start of production of its midsize vehicle, planned for the second half of 2027. The model is the company's bid for a bigger market than its luxury sedan and SUV.
The numbers
Revenue rose 4% from a year earlier to about $350 million in the third quarter, in a US electric-vehicle market that shrank 41% over the same period.
Lucid cut its cash burn by 30% from the previous quarter to $1.04 billion after trimming production and inventory. It still lost $1.08 billion for common shareholders, or $2.74 a share.
The company ended September with $2 billion in liquidity before the new facility.
"We are grateful for the continued financial support from our anchor shareholder," Silvio Napoli, Lucid's chief executive, said in the filing.
Alexander De Bock, the chief financial officer, said the savings came from "decisive actions to align our manufacturing capacity with demand."
Lucid shares fell about 5% in extended trading on Monday.
A familiar backer
The fund is Lucid's largest shareholder and has repeatedly topped up its finances. An affiliate committed $1 billion in March 2024 and a further $1.5 billion in August that year.
Last year the fund expanded the same delayed-draw loan to about $2 billion, and in April it committed another $550 million. Lucid drew $400 million from the facility in October.
The Saudi angle
The bet is tied to the kingdom's industrial plans. Lucid expects to inaugurate its AMP-2 plant in Saudi Arabia, its first factory outside the US, in early 2027.
Electric cars are central to Riyadh's push to build a local auto industry and diversify away from oil. Keeping Lucid funded keeps that factory on track.
What to watch
Lucid expects to set out its mid-term plan and targets early next year, and to reveal production dates for the midsize model in the first quarter of 2027.
