Electric truck maker Lordstown Motors and DiamondPeak Holdings Corp. have entered into a definitive agreement for a business combination that would result in Lordstown becoming a publicly listed company. Upon closing of the transaction, the combined company will be named Lordstown Motors Corp. and is expected to remain listed on the NASDAQ and trade under the new ticker symbol, “RIDE.”
The company said Monday the deal should help it fulfill its goal of beginning production on the Endurance all-electric pickup truck in the latter half of 2021.
Steve Burns, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Lordstown, commented, “We are thrilled with the opportunity to build Lordstown Motors into a top-tier electric truck company that is highly differentiated from the competition. We are uniquely positioned to be a leader in the industry, with our first vehicle, the revolutionary Lordstown Endurance. Our all-electric full-size pickup truck delivers the equivalent of 75 miles per gallon and has been systematically engineered and competitively priced specifically for the large commercial fleet market, which includes companies in manufacturing, contracting, utilities, transportation and delivery, and agriculture, among others. Since its unveiling just over a month ago, the Endurance has been met with enthusiastic support, and to date, we have secured $1.4 billion of pre-orders. Our platform is rooted in sustainability, and the entire Lordstown team is committed to ensuring we contribute to a healthier planet for generations to come.”
To accomplish Lordstown’s mission, in November 2019 the company purchased the former General Motors Lordstown Assembly Plant, a 6.2 million square foot facility estimated to be capable of producing in excess of 600,000 electric vehicles annually, with only modest incremental investment. Lordstown is believed to be one of the first electric vehicle manufacturers to acquire a near production ready plant. The Lordstown complex provides Lordstown with critical flexibility and line-of-sight to production, immediate access to a well-trained and highly capable workforce in Ohio’s Mahoning Valley, and positions Lordstown to be first to market.
David Hamamoto, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of DiamondPeak, added, “We have evaluated hundreds of companies for more than a year and Lordstown stood out as a differentiated, high growth company at the confluence of electric vehicles and light-duty trucks, two highly valuable areas of focus and tremendous opportunity in the automotive sector. Lordstown’s top-tier management team, led by Steve Burns, has captured a clear lane of customers in the fleet market. The team’s vast experience and track-record in launching both traditional and electric vehicles, as well as the company’s strong strategic relationships, provides Lordstown with a unique competitive advantage and positions the company to achieve its milestone of commencing production of the Endurance in the second half of 2021.”
Lordstown unveiled the prototype of its flagship Endurance pickup truck on June 25, 2020, and to date, has received more than 27,000 pre-orders for the vehicle representing over $1.4 billion of potential revenue, primarily from commercial fleet customers.
As evidence of the Endurance’s appeal to the commercial fleet industry customer base, Holman Automotive, of which ARI is the largest privately held fleet management company in the world, has indicated very strong initial interest on behalf of their client portfolio, and the Auto Truck Group is exploring the potential for on-the-production-line upfitting and modifications within the Lordstown manufacturing plant.
The Endurance’s revolutionary use of an in-wheel hub motor design is expected to improve performance, efficiency, and safety, while providing a significant reduction in total cost of ownership. Lordstown will be the only manufacturer of full-size electric pickup trucks focused exclusively on the large commercial fleet market and is expected to be the first to come to market with the innovative hub motor design.
“The Endurance was constructed from the ground up with simplicity in mind,” continued Steve Burns. “Equipped with hub motors in each wheel, and seamlessly integrated with our software system, we are effectively able to deliver a motor and mind in each wheel. Further, this design means that the Endurance has just four moving parts in the drivetrain, as compared to more than 2,000 in vehicles utilizing a traditional internal combustion engine. Together, this allows us to significantly increase reliability, maximize performance, and reduce total cost of ownership. Our streamlined and simplified design positions the Endurance to be one of the simplest and most cost effective vehicles on U.S. roads.”
