New American car brand Canoo, which wants to build cars in VDL Nedcar in Born, is reconsidering these plans. Americans see a lot of uncertainty about production in Europe.
The head of the company wants to meet with the VDL later this month to review the agreements. VDL Nedcar does not want to respond to this maneuver by the Americans.
Prefer your factory
This news came to the table during a phone update with investors during Canoo’s latest quarterly earnings presentation. CEO Tony Aquila has made it clear that he would rather build his cars in his own factory in the United States than order them at a factory in Europe. He mentioned disadvantages such as the effects of the epidemic, transportation and taxes.
take
The VDL Nedcar hack is also of concern to Americans. It said disclosure of confidential company information and intellectual property could affect the company’s operations, prospects and financial results.
VDL introduced Canoo last summer as the first new customer as BMW will apparently stop production in Born at the end of 2023. Canoo wanted to start building 1,000 units of their Lifetsyle vehicle in Born at the end of next year, a multifunctional truck for people. The vehicle can cover a distance of 400 km on a single battery charge. In 2024, production should be increased to 15,000 units.
Read also: This is the car that VDL Nedcar will build in Born
government support
It now appears to be in danger. US CEO Aquila says VDL Nedcar was a good option in its early start-up phase. But now that there appears to be enough demand for the new car in the US, investing in a new plant in America is becoming more and more attractive. The company is now also greatly helped by government subsidies.
unable to respond
Company spokesperson Mel Timmers of VDL Nedcar said he was unable to respond to the US trading partner’s comments. “We have confidentiality agreements with Kanu. I can’t go into that.” The timers cannot say whether the Americans are violating this secrecy.
$30 million
Canoo has already transferred about $30 million to VDL Nedcar. At the Born plant, work is already underway on the production line of the new American car. According to CEO Aquila, he has a good relationship with the Van der Leegte family (owners of VDL ed.) and is therefore not afraid to lose that money. Publicly traded Canoo never sold a car and suffered a loss of nearly $81 million in the third quarter.
