According to the announcement, the new 500 acre, one million square foot facility will be located on the west side of Phoenix and will bring more than $1 billion in capital investment to the region by 2024.
“After 12 months, nine states and 30 site locations, Arizona, Governor Ducey, Sandra Watson and Chris Camacho were the clear front runners,” They understood what 2,000 jobs would mean to their cities and state,” said Nikola Motor Company CEO and founder, Trevor Milton. “Arizona has the workforce to support our growth and a governor that was an entrepreneur himself. We will begin transferring our R&D and headquarters to Arizona immediately and hope to have the transition completed by October 2018. We have already begun planning the construction for our new zero emission manufacturing facility in Buckeye, which we expect to have underway by the end of 2019.”
Nikola Motor Company, the other automaker named after the famous Serbian-American inventor, designs and manufactures hydrogen-electric vehicles, electric vehicle drivetrains, vehicle components, energy storage systems and hydrogen stations. The Nikola One debuted in Salt Lake City over a year ago, not long after the company’s announcement that it would be powered by an 800V hydrogen-electric fuel cell. How the Nikola One will stack up against Tesla’s Semis is still an open question, but Nikola Motor Company has reported that it currently has over 8,000 trucks on preorder.
The company selected Buckeye, Arizona due to numerous factors including the state’s pro-business environment, engineering schools, educated workforce and geographic location that provides direct access to major markets.
“Nikola Motor Company’s selection of Arizona demonstrates that we are leading the charge when it comes to attracting innovative, industry-disrupting companies,” said Governor Ducey. “This incredible new technology will revolutionize transportation, and we’re very proud it will be engineered right here in Arizona. I thank Nikola’s CEO Trevor Milton and his entire team for this significant investment in our state.”
For more manufacturing facility news, check out Mazda Engine Machining Expands in Thailand.