Foxconn Technology, better known as Apple assembler, has signed a 7-year deal with electric carmaker Fisker Inc to develop and manufacture a new electric vehicle (EV).
Fisker Inc will design the vehicle and Foxconn will assemble the same at a plant to come up in the US. The EV will go into production by late 2023 and will be sold under the Fisker brand in North America, Europe, India, and China.
The EV will be built on a new lightweight platform created by both companies. The five-passenger EV will be sold in India, too and is expected to be priced below $30,000 (around Rs 22 lakh).
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Possibility of a manufacturing unit in India, too
It is interesting that Foxconn Technology is giving a boost to its automotive capabilities at a time when technology companies including its main customer, Apple, are looking to expand in electronic vehicles segment.
Foxconn's new plant will start with an annual capacity of at least 150,000 vehicles, with the eventual goal of producing more than 250,000 vehicles a year across multiple sites.
Foxconn and Fisker will jointly invest in the program called “Project PEAR” (Personal Electric Automotive Revolution) and share in any profits.
“In order to deliver on our promise of product breakthroughs from Project PEAR, we needed to rethink every aspect of product development, sourcing and manufacturing,” Fisker said in a statement. “Our partnership with Foxconn enables us to deliver those industry firsts at a price point that truly opens up electric mobility to the mass market.”
As Fisker and Foxconn are considering international markets for future production, there is a likelihood of them setting up a factory in India, too.
Aside from Project PEAR, Fisker already has a vehicle, Ocean, which is set to go into production in 2022. The Los-Angeles based start-up has already joined hands with Magna Inc to make the Ocean electric vehicle starting at about $38,000.
Foxconn, for its part, has partnered with Chinese startup Byton to help produce the company’s first electric vehicle, the M-Byte.
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