Mullen Automotive completes purchase of Electric Last Mile assets

Mullen Automotive announced yesterday that it had acquired Electric Last Mile Solutions in a $240 million cash purchase, a deal that will allow the California-based startup to begin manufacturing electric vehicles.

The purchase of ELMS will allow Mullen Automotive to build up to 50,000 EVs annually and gives Mullen control over ELMS’ inventory, intellectual property rights, and its plant in Mishawaka, Indiana.

ELMS filed for bankruptcy in June, less than a year after the Michigan startup went public in a $1.4 million SPAC deal. Mullen Automotive went public in 2021 in a SPAC merger. In September, Mullen acquired a 60% controlling interest in Bollinger Motors, another Michigan-based startup that planned to build battery-electric commercial trucks and off-road pickups.

David Michery, CEO and Chairman of Mullen Automotive, said in a statement that the purchase of ELMS will allow Mullen to “shorten its production path and aggressively expand into the commercial and consumer EV market.”

The purchase of ELMS will help Mullen accelerate its launch of the Mullen FIVE and Bollinger B1 and B2 retail vehicles. The Mullen FIVE, along with the Mullen Class 1 and Class 3 commercial vehicles expected next year, will be built in Tunica, Mississippi. The Mullen FIVE is scheduled to start production in 2024.

Mullen Automotive also has plans to build an “ultra-high-performance EV sport crossover” called the FIVE RS, which will have 1,000 horsepower, a top speed of 200 mph, and the ability to do 0-60 mph in under two seconds.

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