Saudi electric car firm plots global expansion after state backing

Amid the shifting sands of the car industry, new players are emerging all the time – and now Saudi Arabia wants a bit of the action. Six months ago, the Middle Eastern kingdom signalled its intent with the launch of a new electric car brand, Ceer – and while it has been relatively quiet since, there are plenty of reasons to take it seriously. First, there’s the role it will play in finally establishing a car manufacturing industry in Saudi Arabia, something the country has been keen to pursue for some time – as was evidenced, for example, by talks with JLR about a prospective facility just over a decade ago. Ceer also has significant backing from the formidable crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, who sees it as a key part of his highly ambitious Vision 2030 plan to diversify the Saudi Arabian economy, creating thousands of jobs for local people and contributing £6.8 billion to the nation’s GDP. Funding won’t be an issue, because Ceer is supported by the financial muscle of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), which has already pumped big money into Aston Martin, Lucid and McLaren. Away from the car industry, the benefits of PIF involvement have been emphatically proven in the sporting arena, where breathtaking investments in golf (the elite LIV tour), football (Newcastle United and investment within the Saudi football league) and boxing (heavyweight championship bouts) have ripped up established hierarchies. Ceer, it is clear, will not be another impoverished start-up constantly scrabbling around for finance. The ambition of the project is also reflected in the leadership team that has been assembled over the past few months. At the helm is CEO Jim DeLuca, previously of General Motors and boss of Vietnam’s Vinfast, while a stellar supporting cast of executives includes former McLaren design director Rob Melville, plus others from Tesla, Daimler and Lotus. So, with the building blocks swiftly being put in place, what can we expect from the fledgling company? Most immediately, much of the focus is on the creation of the manufacturing base at King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC), a development on the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia about an hour north of Jeddah that will serve as a hub for the country’s motor industry and has great export potential as a deep-water port. Already, Ceer has signed up for a $95 million (£75m) production facility of one million square metres and it has been joined by Lucid and Hyundai, with the ultimate aim of around 500,000 vehicles a year coming off the various lines by 2030. For context, the UK manufactured 775,000 cars in 2022 and Italy made 796,000. While sceptics might query the involvement of Lucid at KAEC, given the uncertainty that regularly surfaces about the California company, it is unlikely to have any bearing on Ceer’s future. “Whatever happens around us, we’ve got to progress on our [own] plan and strategy,” a spokesman stressed. That strategy revolves around designing and building cars that, initially at least, are targeted at the local region. Ceer candidly admits that the home market – which generates around half a million sales a year – plus the wider Gulf area and North Africa, are its immediate priorities. The opportunity in this part of the world is clear, with the (relatively) nearby manufacturing facilities in Egypt and Morocco more focused on lower-tech vehicles and Europe respectively. And the vehicles themselves? Understandably, Ceer won’t give too much away at this stage, but we do know saloons and SUVs are planned that will use architecture from Taiwan’s Foxconn (a joint-venture partner with PIF) and components from BMW, with a heavy focus on infotainment and connectivity. Level two-plus autonomy is a minimum and level three is being targeted. In addition, the first models are being specifically designed to cope with the extreme heat and rough terrain common in the Middle East. Affordability is also seen as important in a country where the few EVs on the road tend to be expensive imports from the likes of Tesla and Lucid. Even more intriguing is how the cars might look. “It’s not going to be a Vinfast in terms of having a standard design,” I was told by a spokesman. “You’re going to see something unusual. An example is Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea tourism project: the hotels they are building are completely different. Our challenge is to do something completely different, too.” Even at this very early stage in Ceer’s journey, there are plenty in the industry who believe the project has genuine potential. As one analyst pointed out to Autocar, PIF’s involvement could open the door for Saudi’s political decision makers to leverage their power to broker deals with foreign countries. That has to be an advantage. And a British industry veteran who is now based in Saudi and familiar with the plans told us: “There’s a very serious intention to build a proper car company here. They know what it takes to compete. They want to succeed and have the budget to be able to hire the right people.” At the very least, it is not unreasonable to suggest that over the next decade, Ceer can become a regional powerhouse if not a global one, although a spokesman would only offer a non-committal “Inshallah” when I raised that prospect. One thing is for sure, though: however it evolves, Saudi’s long-awaited entry into the industry is likely to be worth watching.