Saudi Crown Prince Launches First Cars of "Seer" Company

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman launched the first cars of the national company "Seer" under the name "Exabot", in a move that shifts one of the Kingdom's most prominent bets to localize the automotive industry from the stage of building factories and supply chains to product launch, as part of efforts to diversify the economy and enhance the contribution of advanced industries to the GDP.

The Crown Prince, who is also the Prime Minister and Chairman of the Public Investment Fund, stated: "The launch of the first cars from Seer represents another step taken by the Kingdom in its journey to build a sustainable and prosperous industrial system and empower the automotive industry as a key driver of economic growth, by attracting investments, enabling national competencies, and enhancing the role of the private sector, to make the Kingdom a leading regional and global hub in this sector."

"Seer" is launching the electric car "Exabot" in sedan and SUV categories, marking the beginning of a fleet consisting of seven models that the company intends to launch successively over the next five years, including medium and small-sized cars with various drive systems, according to the Saudi Press Agency "SPA".

All categories of "Seer" will be produced in the company's industrial complex within the King Salman Automotive Industry Complex in King Abdullah Economic City on the Red Sea coast, in an area that is gradually transforming into a vehicle manufacturing hub in the Kingdom. The company opened its factory in the city with a production capacity of up to 240,000 cars annually at full operation, according to CEO James DeLuca in an interview with "Bloomberg News" last February.

"Seer" was established in 2022 as a joint venture between the Public Investment Fund and "Foxconn", to design, engineer, test, and manufacture cars, in addition to sales and after-sales services within the Kingdom. Under its industrial model, the company obtains licenses for electric vehicle component technologies from "BMW", while "Foxconn" is responsible for developing the electrical system of the vehicles.

The "Exabot" cars were designed and engineered locally according to global specifications, with their design inspired by the Saudi environment and culture, according to "WAS". The workforce at the company has grown from about 20 employees at its inception to around 2,300 employees, alongside building a network of local and international partnerships to support manufacturing.

"Seer" aims to raise the percentage of local content in its cars to 45% by 2034, benefiting from partnerships with global and local suppliers, including "BMW", "Hyundai Transys", "Rimac", and "Siemens", in addition to Saudi companies such as Al-Zamil Group and Abdul Latif Jameel Group, according to its CEO.

Last February, Diluka revealed that the company signed 16 agreements with suppliers for automotive parts and components worth 3.7 billion riyals, in addition to 11 partnerships established the previous year worth 5.5 billion riyals. "Seer" also attracted five global first-tier suppliers to King Abdullah Economic City, in a move aimed at providing components close to production lines and supporting localization plans.

The launch of "Exabot" comes after years of Saudi investments aimed at establishing an integrated value chain for the automotive industry, led by investments from the Public Investment Fund and its portfolio companies.

King Abdullah Economic City also hosts the "Lucid" electric car factory, which opened in 2023 as the company's first facility outside the United States. The facility aims to reach a production capacity of 155,000 cars annually, according to a statement issued at the factory's opening.

It is expected that "Seer" will contribute more than 30 billion riyals (8 billion dollars) to the Kingdom's GDP, along with improving the trade balance by about 80 billion riyals (21 billion dollars), in addition to providing direct and indirect jobs by 2034, according to a report by the Saudi agency.

These targets gain importance in light of the Kingdom's efforts to replace part of vehicle imports and their components with local production, alongside building a manufacturing base that can serve regional markets in the future.