Electric-vehicle maker Lucid Group Inc. is “exploring” selling its cars in China, CNBC reported late Wednesday, though there is no timeline yet.
In an interview with CNBC at the IAA auto show in Munich, Germany, Lucid’s chief engineer Eric Bach said: “It’s the world’s largest car market. It’s going to be likely the world’s largest and fastest adopting EV market as we can see…. It’s something we are exploring, we are investing in.”
Bach said there was no market-entry date yet, “because we just need to get it right.”
“If you enter China on the wrong terms, you can make a lot of mistakes,” he told CNBC.
Lucid said in June it plans to eventually expand to China, without offering details about the expansion. Lucid’s cash-flow guidance for 2022 included plans to enter China in 2023.
Bach also told CNBC that the luxury EV maker plans to launch a mid-size car in 2026, and that an affordable, mass-market car is in its future plans, once the company achieves “economies of scale.”
Barron’s on MarketWatch: Tesla and BYD are winning in China. Why Lucid is taking its time to join the race.
Earlier Wednesday, Baird analyst Ben Kallo launched coverage of Lucid’s stock with a neutral rating, taking a wait-and-see approach until it can ramp up its volumes.
In its quarterly earnings report last month, Lucid reported weaker sales, but kept its 2023 production outlook of more than 10,000 vehicles unchanged. In July, the EV maker reported disappointing numbers, with 1,404 vehicles delivered and 2,173 vehicles produced in its second quarter.
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