Arrival (company)

(Redirected from Charge Automotive)

Arrival was a British electric vehicle manufacturer[5][6] headquartered in Howald, Luxembourg[4] that planned to build lightweight commercial vehicles.[7] Research and development took place at a facility in Banbury, Oxfordshire.[8]

Arrival
Formerly
  • Charge R&D Limited (2015–2016)
  • Charge Automotive Ltd (2016–2017)
  • Arrival Limited (2017–2022)
Company typePublic
Nasdaq: ARVL
Industry
Founded2015; 9 years ago (2015)
FounderDenis Sverdlov
HeadquartersHowald, Luxembourg
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Igor Torgov (CEO)[1]
ProductsElectric vehicles
OwnerDenis Sverdlov (35%)[2]
Number of employees
800 (2023)[3]
Websitearrival.com
Footnotes / references
[4]

Arrival raised $118 million from US funds manager BlackRock in October 2020, adding to previous investment from Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Co and sister company Kia Motors Corp of $111 million.[9] The company became listed on NASDAQ by merging with special-purpose acquisition company CIIG Merger Corp.[10]

In February 2024, after getting its stock delisted from the Nasdaq, Arrival's UK division entered administration, with future plans of a sale of Arrival and all of its affiliated assets.[11]

Vehicles

edit

According to Arrival, four electric vehicle types were being developed: a bus, a van, a large van, and a small vehicle platform. Start of production of the bus was planned for the last quarter of 2021.[12]

 
Arrival Van on display at Fully Charged in 2022

The van will have a 120 kW (160 hp) engine, giving a maximum speed of 120 km/h (75 mph), and a payload of up to 1,975 kg (4,354 lb). Depending on the battery option specified, the van will have a range of from 180 km (110 mi) to 340 km (210 mi) on a single charge.[13] U.S.-based United Parcel Service (UPS) has placed an order for 10,000 delivery vans from Arrival, with the option for an additional 10,000.[14][15]

In June 2020, Arrival announced that the Arrival Bus was undergoing beta prototype testing.[16] The company unveiled its prototype in November 2021, and said that production would commence at its South Carolina plant in the second quarter of 2022.[17]

Arrival had developed a car for the purpose of ride hailing. It had done so in partnership with Uber and in close consultation with Uber drivers. Arrival had also entered a partnership with Breathe, which would have served as the third-party distributor of the Arrival car.[citation needed]

History

edit

Founded in 2015 by Russian telecom billionaire[18] businessman Denis Sverdlov, the former Deputy Minister of Mass Communications to the Kremlin[19] who previously served as the General Director of the Yota Group, a Russian mobile service provider, Arrival is a global company with headquarters in Kensington, London and Charlotte, North Carolina, US. It has an R&D facility in Banbury, and offices in North America, Germany, Israel, Russia and the Netherlands.[20] In 2021 Sverdlov was the company's majority owner, holding 76% of shares following the company's public listing on the NASDAQ stock exchange.[21]

In August 2017, the Royal Mail announced an agreement with Arrival to trial nine vehicles in the ranges of 3.5, 6 and 7 tonnes GVW.[22]

In May 2019, United Parcel Service announced a deal with Arrival to trial 35 vehicles across London and Paris as part of a wider strategy to electrify their massive fleet of delivery vehicles.[23]

BlackBerry announced in October 2019 that they would be powering Arrival's Generation 2.0 intelligent electric vehicles. As part of the agreement, BlackBerry would license its BlackBerry QNX technology to Arrival, including its QNX SDP 7.0 real-time operating system, to serve as the secure foundation for ADAS features within the company's vehicle platform.[24]

Mike Ableson, former Vice President of EV Infrastructure and Global Strategy at General Motors, joined Arrival in October 2019 as CEO of Automotive and North America.[25]

In December 2019, Cubic Telecom, a connectivity management software provider, partnered with Arrival to deliver intelligent connectivity software to their electric vehicle fleets.[26]

Arrival announced in January 2020 that Hyundai Motor Group and Kia Motors had invested €100 million in the company, marking the start of a strategic partnership between the automakers to accelerate the adoption of commercial electric vehicles globally.[27] Following the investment, Arrival revealed that they had achieved "unicorn" status, valuing the start-up at €3 billion.[28] Arrival plans to use 10,000 m2 (110,000 sq ft) "microfactories" to build their electric vehicles having developed a "skateboard" platform containing a drive train and batteries.[29]

On 29 January 2020, Arrival announced that UPS had invested in the company and placed an order for 10,000 Generation 2 electric vehicles to be rolled out across the UK, Europe and North America before 2024 as part of their transition towards a zero-emissions fleet.[30] The deal was reported to be worth $400m along with an equity stake in the company of an undisclosed size.[31] The purpose-built electric vehicles have been co-developed by Arrival and UPS in order to meet UPS's exact specifications, including the latest advanced control and safety features.[32]

Arrival acquired a new factory in Bicester in March 2020, with plans to be operational by 2021 and start production in 2022.[33]

Arrival announced a new passenger bus in June 2020, designed for coronavirus-era social distancing.[34] The comopany said the bus would be priced the same as a comparable diesel bus; lower running costs would make operating it cheaper for operators in the long term.[35]

In December 2020, Arrival established its North American headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina, US.[36]

On 25 March 2021, the company went public on NASDAQ under ARVL symbol.[37] The company was valued at more than US$15bn on the Nasdaq at its peak, dropping from 2022 to $250M in January 2023.[18]

Arrival has established operations in the United States, with the Charlotte, North Carolina metro area serving as the company's U.S. base of operations. Arrival's first U.S. office was in the South End neighborhood.[38] The company's first U.S. microfactory in the nearby South Carolina suburb of Rock Hill was to produce buses.[39] The company was investing $41.2M for its second microfactory in West Charlotte, where it planned to produce UPS delivery vans from mid-2022, with a workforce of 250.[40][41][42][43]

In late May 2021, Arrival announced that it would be building electric cars for Uber ride-hailing drivers, with production expected in Q3 of 2023.[44][45] In August 2021, Arrival President Avinash Rugoobur stated that the company would open a product development R&D center in India due to increasing interest from that market.[46] In November 2021, the company announced that it would start production the following year.[47] In November 2021, it was reported that Arrival had non-binding orders or letters of intent for 64,000 vehicles.[17]

In January 2023, the company cut 800 UK jobs, about half the remaining workforce, to reduce costs while seeking extra funding and planning to expand in the US to take advantage of green energy subsidies. It still employs 400 employees worldwide.[18]

In October 2022, the company announced job cuts amid relocation of its van production from Bicester to the US.[3] It also announced restructuring of its business to focus on the US market by capitalising on the incentives from Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.[48] In January 2023, it reduced its remaining UK workforce by half, to 800, to concentrate on the US and take advantage of green energy subsidies.[18] The company also appointed Igor Torgov as its CEO.[1]

In Spring 2023, Arrival announced a second merger with special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Kensington Capital Acquisition Corp V for $283 million dollars.[49] The deal was later cancelled due to concerns about Arrival's production delays. Arrival also lost out on a $25 million dollar investment by US hedge fund Antara Capital. The agreement to purchase an additional $25m in equity was terminated before the deadline of June 30th, 2023.[50]

Arrival was delisted from Nasdaq in January 2024 and shortly afterward began insolvency proceedings.[11]

Leadership

edit
  • Chairman: Denis Sverdlov (since November 2022)[51]
  • Chief Executive: Igor Torgov (since January 2023)[18]

List of former chairmen

edit

The position of chairman was first formed in November 2020, when Arrival publicly listed on the NASDAQ.

  1. Peter Cuneo (2020–2022)[52]

List of former chief executives

edit
  1. Denis Sverdlov (2016–2022)[51]
  2. Peter Cuneo (2022–2023); interim CEO

References

edit
  1. ^ a b "British EV startup Arrival to lay off half its staff, names insider as CEO". Reuters. 30 January 2023.
  2. ^ Lambert, Yannick (26 June 2023). "Luxembourg e-car maker Arrival reeling as owner dumps shares". Luxembourg Times. Whilst Sverdlov's Kinetik still owned more than 60% in Arrival in January, according to the register, his stake went down to just above 35%
  3. ^ a b Campbell, Peter (20 October 2022). "EV start-up Arrival to cut UK jobs in production shift to US". Financial Times.
  4. ^ a b "Arrival Registration Statement (Form F-3)". US Securities and Exchange Commission. 24 February 2023.
  5. ^ "Arrival's electric van is ready for testing". ca.finance.yahoo.com. 3 March 2021.
  6. ^ GmbH, finanzen net. "Ex-Russian minister stands to gain 3,000% from electric vehicle maker Arrival SPAC, report says". markets.businessinsider.com.
  7. ^ Jones, Mark (20 October 2019). "Arrival is the Tech Company that's Decided to Make Electric Vans". TechHQ. Hybrid. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  8. ^ ARRIVAL (13 March 2020). "Our factory is in Banbury, Oxfordshire". Twitter. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  9. ^ "BlackRock invests $118 million in UK electric vehicle startup Arrival". Reuters. 14 October 2020. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  10. ^ Browne, Ryan (18 November 2020). "UK electric vehicle maker Arrival is going public via SPAC at a $5.4 billion valuation". CNBC. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
  11. ^ a b "Arrival: Electric van maker's UK arm enters administration". 5 February 2024. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  12. ^ "Arrival Analyst Presentation" (PDF). Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  13. ^ Hubbard, C.J. (12 August 2022). "New British-built Arrival electric van: in-depth info, official pics and more". Parkers. Archived from the original on 15 August 2022. Page replaced by "New British-built Arrival electric van: major blow to UK plans", Tom Webster, 20 October 2022, same URL
  14. ^ "UK electric van maker Arrival secures £340m order from UPS". The Guardian. 30 January 2020. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  15. ^ "Arrival Van". techcrunch.com. 18 March 2021. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  16. ^ Tomlinson, Victoria (17 June 2020). "Arrival Bus Reimagines Public Transportation for a New Normal" (Press release). London, UK: Arrival. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
  17. ^ a b "UK's Arrival unveils pre-production prototype electric bus". yahoo!finance. 18 November 2021. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  18. ^ a b c d e Lawson, Alex (30 January 2023). "Electric vans startup Arrival to cut 800 jobs amid focus on US market". the Guardian.
  19. ^ Henni, Adrien (5 April 2021). "Former Russian Government Official Denis Sverdlov Scores $10Bln With Electric Vehicle Startup". The Moscow Times. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
  20. ^ Jolly, Jasper (17 September 2019). "Arrival Time: How the White Van Went Green". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  21. ^ Dawkins, David (25 March 2021). "The Founder Of Electric Vehicle Maker Arrival Is Worth $10.6 Billion After SPAC IPO". Forbes. Archived from the original on 25 March 2021.
  22. ^ "Royal Mail's New Electric Vans Unveiled". BBC. 23 August 2017. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  23. ^ Lambert, Fred (9 May 2018). "UPS to Deploy a Fleet of New Neat-Looking Custom-Built All-Electric Delivery Trucks". Electrek. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  24. ^ Smith, Adrian (19 November 2019). "Arrival's Intelligent EVs to be Powered by BlackBerry's QNX Technology". Auto Futures. Archived from the original on 5 February 2021. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  25. ^ "Former GM Executive Mike Ableson to Lead Arrival's North American Operations". Auto Futures. 1 October 2019. Archived from the original on 15 January 2020. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  26. ^ "Cubic Telecom Partners with Arrival" (Press release). Cubic Telecom. 11 December 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  27. ^ Tomlinson, Victoria (16 January 2020). "UK Electric Vehicle Unicorn Arrival Receives €100M Investment from Hyundai and Kia" (Press release). London, UK and Seoul, South Korea: Arrival. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
  28. ^ Campbell, Peter (29 January 2020). "UPS Orders 20,000 Vehicles from Electric-Van Maker Arrival". Financial Times. Retrieved 24 February 2020.
  29. ^ Tovey, Alan; Field, Matthew (16 January 2020). "British Electric Van Company Arrival Claims "Unicorn" Status as Hyundai and Kia Invest". The Telegraph. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
  30. ^ Page, Felix (29 January 2020). "UPS Orders 10,000 Electric Vans from British Start-Up Arrival". Autocar. Haymarket Media Group. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  31. ^ Jolly, Jasper (29 January 2020). "UK Electric Van Maker Arrival Secures £340m Order from UPS". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  32. ^ Tomlinson, Victoria (29 January 2020). "UPS Invests in Arrival and Orders 10,000 Generation 2 Electric Vehicles" (Press release). London, UK and Atlanta, USA: Arrival. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  33. ^ Tyrrell, Michael (13 March 2020). "British Electric Van Manufacturer Acquires New Factory in Bicester". Production Engineering Solutions. MIT Publishing. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  34. ^ Szymkowski, Sean (17 June 2020). "Arrival's Electric Bus is Designed for Coronavirus-Era Social Distancing". Roadshow. CNET. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
  35. ^ Ohnsman, Alan (17 June 2020). "Electric Truck Unicorn Arrival Revamps the Transit Bus for a Post-Coronavirus Era". Forbes. Archived from the original on 17 June 2020. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
  36. ^ "British electric vehicle maker to open HQ in Charlotte, bring 150 jobs". The Charlotte Observer. 9 December 2020. Archived from the original on 9 December 2020.
  37. ^ "Arrival Lists its Shares on Nasdaq With the Symbol "ARVL"; First Electric Vehicles due Q4 2021". arrival.com. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
  38. ^ Fahey, Ashley. "London electric vehicle company to open U.S. corporate office in Charlotte". Charlotte Business Journal. American City Business Journals. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
  39. ^ Fahey, Ashley. "Electric vehicle company Arrival to establish first U.S. microfactory in Rock Hill, creating 240 jobs". Charlotte Business Journal. American City Business Journals. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
  40. ^ "Electric vehicle maker to build UPS delivery trucks at new Charlotte factory". wcnc.com. 23 March 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  41. ^ "Arrival to open a second US microfactory to build electric vans for UPS". TechCrunch. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  42. ^ Clifford, Tyler (23 March 2021). "British EV start-up Arrival is setting up in North Carolina to build a UPS fully electric fleet". CNBC. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  43. ^ "Arrival EV Van Startup Will Build Second US 'Microfactory' To Meet UPS Order". InsideEVs. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  44. ^ "Arrival to make an electric car for Uber drivers". www.fleetnews.co.uk. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  45. ^ "Arrival Will Build an EV Passenger Car—for Uber Drivers". www.msn.com. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  46. ^ "Arrival is on track to begin production of its electric bus and van next year". TechCrunch. 12 August 2021. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  47. ^ "UK's Arrival unveils pre-production prototype electric bus". 18 November 2021.
  48. ^ Mishra, Savyata; Sriram, Akash (20 October 2022). "EV startup Arrival to focus on U.S. market to rein in costs". Reuters.
  49. ^ Simister, George (16 May 2023). "Arrival pushes ahead with second SPAC merger amid cost-cutting". UKTN. UK Tech News. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
  50. ^ Agarwal, Kabir. "Arrival loses key finance lifelines as troubles mount". Sifted. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
  51. ^ a b "Board of Directors". Archived from the original on 19 May 2022.
  52. ^ "Management team". Archived from the original on 15 October 2022.
edit