Saudi Arabia can’t get enough of Lucid as it has put more money into the EV startup. The middle-eastern kingdom increased its investment by 9% in the last quarter, as revealed by SEC filings.
The kingdom makes investments globally using its sovereign wealth fund known as Public Investment Fund (PIF). The last investment was worth about $200 million in shares, bringing its total share in Lucid to $1.1 billion. This gives Saudi Arabia a controlling 62% share in the company.
There were rumors of a complete takeover of Lucid by Saudi Arabia in January. It was speculated that the kingdom had enlisted the services of JP Morgan to see the deal through. However, there has been no official confirmation.
The Saudi government invested $1 billion in Lucid in 2018, even before the EV maker went public. Saudi is ready to put its mouth where its money is, as it has ordered 50,000 EVs from Lucid and committed to buying between 1,000 and 2,000 cars annually.
Lucid’s stock has risen by 51% this year. However, it is still trading at 36% of its price last year. But the company’s performance is enough to earn it a “buy” rating from Citi, which is upbeat on Lucid’s technology and product positioning.
Saudi Arabia was embroiled in an investment saga with Tesla in 2018 that has landed CEO Elon Musk in court. However, the government is spreading its EV investment by setting up an EV joint venture with Foxconn.
All eyes will be on Lucid next week as it is scheduled to released its Q4 2022 and full year financials on February 22, 2023.
