Mullen Technologies Picks Memphis For EV Manufacturing

The California-based electric vehicle maker has selected Memphis, TN for its U.S. manufacturing hub, where it will create 800 jobs.

Mullen Technologies Inc., an emerging electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer, will lease an 820,000-square-foot facility in Memphis, TN. Mullen plans to invest more than $336 million in the facility, where it will create up to 800 jobs.

About $299 million of that investment is earmarked for equipment to manufacture 100,000 electric vehicles over a five-year period beginning in the fourth quarter of 2023. The company will spend about $26 million to renovate the existing building, which was vacated by Nike about five years ago.

Mullen Technologies Inc.
The 2P6 SUV crossover (formerly MX-05) will be the first in Mullen’s line of fully electric vehicles that will be manufactured at the Memphis facility.(Source: Mullen Technologies Inc.)

Mullen has been awarded a 15-year Payment-In-Lieu-of-Taxes (PILOT) incentive, worth more than $40 million, from the Economic Development Growth Engine of Memphis and Shelby County (EDGE).

On March 11, 2021, Mullen announced the purchase of a Tunica, MS facility, located 50 miles away from Memphis, TN, which will provide advanced engineering and manufacturing capabilities. Both facilities will support Mullen’s manufacturing requirements for the next 10-plus years.

“Our Tunica and Memphis facility arrives at a very important time for Mullen,” said David Michery, CEO and chairman of Mullen Technologies. “Our pilot facility in Monrovia, California, has now been moved to Tunica, Mississippi. Tunica is more cost-effective and efficient, with close proximity to Memphis. Ultimately, this will produce significant savings in time and money.”

The 2P6 SUV crossover (formerly MX-05) will be the first in Mullen’s line of fully electric vehicles that will be manufactured at the Memphis facility. Mullen is currently working on midstage design efforts for the 2P6 in Southern California. Once completed, Mullen will begin building prototype vehicles at its newly acquired facility in Tunica, MS for initial engineering development and certification. Simultaneously, Mullen will spend the next 33 months creating the necessary infrastructure and installing the required machinery and equipment for the Memphis facility to support large-scale EV production.

“Memphis’ location makes it a primary logistical hub for distribution throughout the U.S. and will provide Mullen with key strategic advantages. The local and state-level administrations are both fully supportive of our manufacturing plan and are showcasing their commitment with significant financial incentives that will help us grow along with the city and state over the next decade,” said John Taylor, VP of Manufacturing for Mullen.

“Memphis moved the world when an alternative new sound known as rock ’n’ roll came from a recording studio on Union Avenue, and we continue to move the world by positioning Memphis to be considered as the new home to an alternative electric vehicle manufacturer in Mullen Technologies,” said Ted Townsend, chief economic development officer for the Greater Memphis Chamber. “This is only the beginning of fulfilling our promise to attract new businesses in innovative industry sectors that will bring good-paying jobs – 800 of them to be exact in this case – to the community. We will continue to aggressively seek this type of growth in advanced automotive manufacturing for Memphis and Shelby County, while at the same time continuing to pursue other industries that create good-paying, sustainable jobs.”

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