Photo: Canoo
Canoo is a fairly small EV company that's aiming to begin production in 2022. To get to that goal, they've just announced a host of changes to the leadership team. They're also changing up their plan to produce vehicles overseas in favor of building them in Arkansas.
Arkansas isn't exactly an automotive hotbed either. I should know, I live here. But northwest Arkansas is by far the most innovative and popular area in the state right now. Canoo has decided to setup not just research and development centers there but also their very own headquarters.
In addition, Canoo will also have a low-volume production facility there in Bentonville, Arkansas. It will likely be responsible for the very first production vehicles to ever roll off of a Canoo line.
That's a surprise considering that Canoo had plans to build vehicles in the Netherlands and has already started work on another production facility in Oklahoma. Now it seems the Canoo believes they'll be faster to market by shifting early production to Arkansas.
The brand is also shifting some responsibilities at the leadership level during this transition. Peter Savagian, former CTO, will leave his role at the end of this year.
Sohel Merchant will take over the position. He had been serving as the Senior VP of Complete Vehicle Engineering and has been in the automotive industry for more than 20 years.
Other additions to the team include Ram Balasubramanian, who will take over as Chief Information Officer, Dean Harlow, as Executive Vice President, and Ramesh Murthy, who will now be the Chief Financial Officer.
This is a big shift for Canoo after they were under fire from the SEC in May of 2021. Despite the difficulty, they still think that they can produce up to 6,000 vehicles in 2022. They also say that the vehicle will start at just $35,000. That would be sincerely ground-breaking at this point.
In addition, Canoo will also have a low-volume production facility there in Bentonville, Arkansas. It will likely be responsible for the very first production vehicles to ever roll off of a Canoo line.
That's a surprise considering that Canoo had plans to build vehicles in the Netherlands and has already started work on another production facility in Oklahoma. Now it seems the Canoo believes they'll be faster to market by shifting early production to Arkansas.
The brand is also shifting some responsibilities at the leadership level during this transition. Peter Savagian, former CTO, will leave his role at the end of this year.
Sohel Merchant will take over the position. He had been serving as the Senior VP of Complete Vehicle Engineering and has been in the automotive industry for more than 20 years.
Other additions to the team include Ram Balasubramanian, who will take over as Chief Information Officer, Dean Harlow, as Executive Vice President, and Ramesh Murthy, who will now be the Chief Financial Officer.
This is a big shift for Canoo after they were under fire from the SEC in May of 2021. Despite the difficulty, they still think that they can produce up to 6,000 vehicles in 2022. They also say that the vehicle will start at just $35,000. That would be sincerely ground-breaking at this point.
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