9:15 am, July 12, 2024
Stellantis has ploughed some £42.5m more into a project aimed at bringing electric flying cars to the skies.
The $55m injection that the multi-brand vehicle manufacturer has given Archer under a strategic funding agreement between the two firms comes on the heels of a successful test flight last month and builds on Stellantis’s purchases of 8.3m shares in the aviation firm in March.
Stellantis also invested $110m (£85m) in Archer last year via stock purchases and investments under the agreement.
Archer says it aims to transform urban travel, replacing 60-to-90-minute commutes by car with estimated 10-to-20-minute electric air taxi flights that it says will be safe, sustainable, low-noise and cost-competitive with ground transport.
Its piloted, four-passenger Midnight aircraft is designed to perform rapid back-to-back flights with minimal charge time between flights.
Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares said: ‘Few things rival the excitement of seeing a dream take flight.
‘I applaud the innovation, expertise and hard work of the engineering and manufacturing teams from Stellantis and Archer.
‘With this additional investment in Archer, we remain on course for a future where freedom of mobility extends beyond today’s roads.’
A high-volume factory is on course to finish construction on a 100-acre site in Georgia later this year, with the 350,000 square foot facility set to make up to 650 aircraft a year.
Archer CEO Adam Goldstein said: ‘The commitment by Stellantis to Archer has been unrivalled, from its foresight to provide the manufacturing expertise and capital needed to accelerate Archer’s business objectives, to the strategic vision and steadfast support from Carlos Tavares.
‘Together, we’re working to redefine urban transportation, opening new worlds of opportunity for citizens across the globe by providing more efficient access to people, places and events across the regions they live in.’
Stellantis has been a strategic partner with Archer since 2020 via various collaboration initiatives, and as an investor since 2021.
During this time, Archer has taken advantage of Stellantis’s manufacturing, supply chain and design expertise as it designs, develops and commercialises its eVTOL aircraft.
