EV startup Faraday picks Nevada for $1B plant

A Gardena electric auto startup announced Thursday that it will build a $1-billion production plant in North Las Vegas and could draw on a $335-million package of tax incentives proposed by Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval. At the time, the location hadn’t been chosen, but we now know it will be located just north of Las Vegas. FF, which has yet to build an electric auto, was considering four states, including Nevada and California, for its production facility.

However, Nevada lawmakers still have to approve the proposal.

Earlier this year, Tesla broke ground on its $6 billion Gigafactory near Reno, which will manufacture lithium-ion batteries to power Tesla’s Model S, Model X and forthcoming Model 3 electric vehicles.

Among the reasons Faraday chose to put roots down in Nevada are “expansive development space, an enthusiastic workforce, an encouraging tax environment, close proximity to our California headquarters and nearby access to the thriving tourism capital of Las Vegas”. The plant is expected to have a total economic impact of $85 billion over 20 years and generate $760 million in tax revenue during that period for state and local governments and schools, Hill said.

A concept of what a Faraday Future vehicle might look like. Jia Yueting, the Chinese billionaire behind the company, made the announcement in a letter to Nevada’s legislature.

North Las Vegas has been courting Faraday for its Apex Industrial Park, where medical marijuana growers have helped transform 2,000 acres (809 hectares) of vacant desert into a site with water and power lines suitable for development. Faraday will also make direct contributions for six years of $1 million a year for K-12 education starting in 2018.

Half of the plant’s workers must be Nevadans, according to the agreement. It also is estimated to create thousands of construction jobs.

Steve Sisolak, Democratic chairman of the Clark County Commission, called himself “admittedly skeptical” of the Faraday Future proposal until he heard the number of jobs it might attract.

“The technology is going to be the payoff, rather than the end product”, O’Connell said in an interview.

“It would be wise to be skeptical about a timetable to build cars this quickly”, he said.

Rindels reported from Carson City, Nevada.