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Lucid Motors, the Saudi wealth fund-backed electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer, will cut China out of its magnets supply chain this year and is looking to build ties with Saudi rare earth suppliers instead, the company’s chief executive told Semafor.
“We are well underway to move completely away from China in 2026, and we welcome additional sources” of magnet supply in Saudi Arabia, CEO Marc Winterhoff said. He added the company was interested in the output from a rare earths processing plant that US-government backed MP Materials and Saudi Arabia’s Maaden are planning in the kingdom.
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The EV maker faced production challenges last year after China restricted rare earth exports, forcing it to start seeking alternatives as part of a broader plan to find new suppliers of critical minerals.
Lucid is increasingly looking to source more parts inside Saudi Arabia as it prepares to begin full manufacturing of its first midsize EV at a plant on the kingdom’s west coast by the end of this year, Winterhoff said. At the moment the company’s Saudi facility only assembles kits from its Arizona plant.
Public Investment Fund holds more than 60% of Lucid stock and has used the company as the anchor for an autos cluster that will also include Saudi-owned EV maker Ceer and South Korea’s Hyundai. Lucid also expects to start ramping up deliveries of a 50,000 vehicle order from the Saudi government next year once the midsize car is in production, Winterhoff said.