By Akash Sriram
(Reuters) – Faraday Future Intelligent Electric will be able to launch its FF91 luxury vehicle without the need for additional funding, Chief Executive Officer Carsten Breitfeld said on Wednesday in an interview with Reuters.
Breitfeld added that the company would need to raise capital in the second half of the year. At a Deutsche Bank conference earlier on Wednesday he said the company was confident of securing additional funds despite tough macroeconomic conditions.
Electric Last Mile Solutions filing for bankruptcy due to its inability to raise additional funds has had investors worried about how balance sheets of other startups fared.
In May, Rivian Automotive Inc said that it had enough cash on hand to open its Georgia factory in 2025, without the need for additional capital.
Faraday said it would start delivery of its FF91 car in the third quarter this year and expects to make between 6,000 and 8,000 cars in 2023.
The company will follow a “hybrid strategy” in building its cars, Breitfeld said, with the FF91 crossover being made at its Hanford, California facility and the FF81 mass market vehicle built by contract manufacturer Myoung Shin.
It expects the FF91 luxury vehicle to compete with brands such as Rolls Royce, Volkswagen Group’s Bentley and Mercedes Benz’s Maybach.
Breitfeld said that Faraday would deliver cars with hardware required for its autonomous driving technology. However, it would use software stack from a third-party and drivers would get updates related to advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) capabilities over the air after launch.
Faraday also said it was in talks with local government and partners in China to start production in the country. However, developments are at a nascent stage.
(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)
