Secretive electric vehicle maker Faraday Future assured Nevada officials that it will guarantee construction of a factory in North Las Vegas with $75 million in bonding.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that Faraday Future executives Dag Reckhorn and Dave Wisnieski sent a letter to the Governor’s Office of Economic Development vowing to acquire a surety bond for the facility and to devote an additional $13 million to infrastructure development.
Faraday announced its selection of Nevada as the site for its billion-dollar U.S. factory late last year, and lawmakers subsequently authorized $215 million in tax incentives and another $120 million in infrastructure improvements.
That same month, however, LeEco — the holding company founded by Faraday backer and Chinese billionaire Jia Yueting — was taken off the Chinese stock exchange, and State Treasurer Dan Swartz visited China last month amid growing concerns about the automaker's production and financing.
Faraday officials previously scrapped most of an ambitious product line and unveiled a non-functioning prototype at January's Consumer Electronics Show.
Swartz, after meeting with prominent investors in China, demanded that Faraday Future provide the financing guarantee before he would release money for the state-funded infrastructure projects.
Under the terms of the surety bond, the Review-Journal reported that the funding would be released back to Faraday Future after it completed construction of at least 1.6 million square feet and began generating revenue from car sales.
Gov. Brian Sandoval praised the company's letter and responded that it provides "full security for Nevada and allows this important set of projects to move forward."
