Faraday Future Signs Joint Venture with Internet Firm The9

Chinese EV-startup Faraday Future and The9 Limited, an established Chinese internet company, formally signed a joint venture agreement on Mar. 24 to manufacture, market, distribute, and sell smart internet electric cars in China.

SEE ALSO: Faraday Future Sells Headquarters After Break with Main Investor Evergrande

According to the agreement, Faraday Future and The9 each account for 50 percent of the shares in the new joint venture. The9 will contribute up to $600 million in three equal installments to the joint venture. FF will grant the JV an exclusive license to manufacture, market, distribute and sell Faraday Future’s new luxury EV V9 and other potential car models in China. The9 has the strategic management and operation rights of the joint venture.

The expected annual production capacity of the joint venture is 300,000 cars, and the first pre-production car is expected to roll off the production line in 2020.

According to CBN, a source familiar with the JV claims that the cooperation indicated that “Jia Yueting (CEO of Faraday Future) has projects but lacks financing channels; Zhu Jun (Chairman of The9) has listed companies that can raise funds, but lacks projects, and the two hit it off. And they have very similar characters.”

The electric vehicle company’s partnership with The9 comes three months after a “peaceful break-up” with its former investor, Chinese real estate giant Evergrande, in December. After the separation, the loss of personnel in Faraday Future China is extremely serious.

“There are, at present, only four or five people left in China,” a person close to the Faraday Future said.

SEE ALSO: Faraday Future Announces the Sale of Its Property in North Las Vegas for $40 million

Just last week, the company announced that it will sell its 900-acre property located in Las Vegas, as well as its headquarters in Los Angeles, as it sought to raise more funds for the mass-production of its vehicles.

Featured Image Source: Marques Brownlee