Canoo Building EVs in OK Factory for Leasing

Oklahoma City Hiring 500 Workers.

Electric Vehicle (EV) startup automaker Canoo has declared a long-term lease understanding with AFV Partners in Oklahoma City that will enable the firm to occupy a 500,000 square-foot structure for manufacturing its much-awaited Lifestyle Vehicles. This facility already exists and is administered by Canoo’s CEO Tony Aquila.

“We chose Oklahoma for many reasons, one of which is the incredible workforce it has,” said Aquila. “They have made a name for themselves in aviation and aero defense, so we are delighted to announce our second manufacturing facility in Oklahoma City, following our Vehicle Module Manufacturing Facility event on April 5 in Pryor, OK.” Aquila continued, “I want to thank Mayor Holt and the people of Oklahoma City for their warm welcome.”

Canoo has announced that it will be taking up 500,000 square feet of the 630,000 square-foot space located close to roads, rail and waterways. This location has the potential to use renewable energy sources. In the first phase of the project, Canoo expects to employ 500 people, and this number is expected to grow in “the coming months”.

Canoo was founded back in 2011 and shortly afterwards made an agreement with Hyundai Motor Group to cooperatively develop its skateboard platform. HyundaiMotorGroup were originally very eager to use that platform for potential upcoming electric vehicles, but then eventually withdrew from the pact for unaccountable factors.

Canoo endured financially difficulty for the subsequent years, yet managed to stay afloat. Subsequently in 2020, it completed a SPAC merger which was subject to an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over potential wrongdoings. Last month, Canoo experienced a share value decrease in the wake of their conclusion to release discounted stocks to raise capital worth $52.5 million; said resources were urgently required for the commencement of production.

A little more than 12 months ago, Canoo was on the brink of collapse, but then the State of Oklahoma came to their rescue by providing an invaluable capital infusion of fifteen million dollars. This attractive proposal facilitated the erection of their new facilities, and tasked them with investing an estimated five hundred and sixty million dollars. It was a highly desired outcome for the Sooner State to have won this endeavor, as they’d recently been overshadowed by Texas in the construction of the Cybertruck.

Last July, Canoo struck a deal with the United States Army for a Light Tactical Vehicle (LTV) for “analysis and demonstration.” By the end of 2020, the LTV demo model was ready for delivery. Canoo also made a pact with NASA last year, which entailed the use of one of their vehicles to take Artemis moon astronauts to the launch pad. Walmart also placed an order of 4,500 units of the Canoo delivery vehicle, expected to be shipped out this year. In order to meet its business obligations, Canoo has taken steps to secure a new factory and a long-term lease agreement.