Faraday Future Shifts EV Production Plans to California

Struggling electric vehicle startup Faraday Future Inc. has signed a lease on a manufacturing facility in Hanford, Calif., a month after pulling the plug on a planned $1 billion plant in North Las Vegas.

Faraday plans to move into the 1 million sq-ft facility, which previously was owned by tiremaker Pirelli SpA, in November. The company says it has begun the clean-up process of the site as it prepares to move in production equipment.

Despite several recent setbacks, Faraday plans to launch its first production vehicle, the 1,055-hp FF 91 supercar, by the end of 2018. The California-based company still is looking for new investors to replace Chinese internet tycoon Jia Yueting, who stepped down as CEO of LeEco (Leshi Internet Information & Technology Corp.) in May after admitting his company over-expanded and was running out of cash.

Faraday describes the Hanford plant as a turnkey facility that will provide a faster path to production than the Las Vegas plant the company had planned to construct. The company notes the new facility is located between Los Angeles and Silicon Valley—the two largest EV markets in the U.S.

Dag Reckhorn, Faraday’s vice president of manufacturing, will oversee the Hanford site. The company aims to eventually employ 1,300 people at the facility.

Faraday, which announced the Las Vegas factory in December 2015, originally planned to launch its first EV this year. To help get back on track, Faraday recently hired former BMW AG EV chief Ulrich Kranz to be its chief technology officer.