Saudi electric car company Ceer to build factory near Red Sea

Saudi Arabia’s new electric vehicle company Ceer has signed a deal to build a manufacturing site in the country. 

Ceer inked a nearly $69 million agreement with the King Abdullah Economic City to build its first manufacturing facility for electric vehicles. The facility will cover 1 million square meters (10.7 million square feet) and construction will begin in early 2023. Ceer said that the “majority” of jobs pertaining to the project will go to Saudi citizens, according to a press release. 

The King Abdullah Economic City is located on the Red Sea north of Jeddah, and hosts factories, a university, a port and more. 

Why it matters: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman unveiled Ceer earlier this month. The company is a joint venture between the Salman-led Public Investment Fund and the Taiwanese electronics company Foxconn. Ceer is Saudi Arabia’s first electric vehicle company, and aims to contribute to the Vision 2030 economic diversification initiative. 

Ceer represents the latest attempt by Saudi Arabia to reduce its dependence on oil and transition to more sustainable and environmentally friendly industries. Most recently, the Public Investment Fund started issuing “green bonds,” which are debt instruments used to finance green projects. 

Saudi oil is not going anywhere in the near future, however. Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said last month that Saudi Arabia is increasing its oil production capacity. 

Salman has been criticized for failing to deliver on some of his ambitious projects. One particularly far-fetched idea is The Line, which is a planned megacity that will stretch 110 miles (170 kilometers) and will have no carbon emissions. 

Know more: Electric vehicles are not necessarily good for the environment. For example, some electric vehicles’ electricity is generated from coal.