Many, including Governor Ducey celebrated the start of production and initial shipments to customers of Nikola Corporation’s zero-emission vehicles, a bold vision that was first launched more than four years ago.
“When I first met with Nikola, I was blown away by their technology and innovative spirit. I hadn’t seen anything like it,” said Governor Ducey at Nikola’s manufacturing facility in Coolidge. “Nikola has become a driving force in Arizona’s rapidly expanding electric vehicle industry. Watching this innovative company grow and put down roots in Arizona has been truly incredible, and I know it’s only getting started. With the beginning of production at this manufacturing facility, Nikola is clearly in the driver’s seat of the future of transportation and commerce. Thank you to the entire Nikola team, Sandra Watson and the Arizona Commerce Authority, our partners at the legislature and local leaders for supporting this phenomenal project.”
Phoenix-based Nikola hosted a tour of its new one million-square-foot facility with Governor Ducey, elected officials and suppliers. During the tour, the governor experienced the state-of-the-art Nikola Tre BEV truck firsthand, riding in the semi-truck.
The zero-emission truck company launched production of its Nikola Tre BEV truck last month, less than two years after it broke ground at the high-tech facility in July 2020.
“Today is an extraordinary day that we have been looking forward to for a long time, and I’m grateful for the vision and commitment of those who have been here from the beginning,” said Mark Russell, Nikola’s Chief Executive Officer during the event. “I can tell you, as a matter of historical fact, none of us would be sitting here today if not for the immediate intervention of the great governor of the great state of Arizona, Doug Ducey.”
Now at full production, Phase 1 of the facility has a production capacity of 2,500 trucks for 2022. With expansion plans already underway, Phase 2 of the manufacturing facility will increase production capacity to 20,000-trucks per year on two shifts. The facility has created hundreds of jobs and invested millions into the state’s economy.
“With our world class universities and community colleges, Arizona has some of the best engineering and manufacturing talent in the country,” said Sandra Watson, President and CEO of the Arizona Commerce Authority. “Nikola not only is a top employer in the region, they are attracting top tier suppliers to further grow Arizona’s robust electric vehicle supply chain. We are incredibly grateful to the entire Nikola team for choosing Arizona to help meet their vision and we are excited for the company’s bright future.”
Nikola selected Arizona for its billion-dollar electric semi-truck plant in 2018, citing the state’s modern infrastructure, top talent and year-round sunshine.
Arizona’s electric vehicle and high-tech manufacturing industry has accelerated in recent years. These innovators have driven Arizona’s historic economic growth.
KORE Power is building a $1 billion lithium-ion battery factory in Buckeye. Li-Cycle, a next-gen battery recycler, is coming to Gilbert.
Last week, LG Energy Solution announced it is investing at least $1.4 billion to build a battery production facility in Queen Creek, creating thousands of jobs.
Since 2015, Arizona has added more than 400,000 jobs and the state has more than 3 million jobs for the first time ever.
