Yahoo Finance Polestar ‘on track to deliver 50,000 cars this year,’ CEO says
For Polestar (PSNY) CEO Thomas Ingenlath, the EV-maker’s first gross profit as a public company wasn’t the biggest takeaway from Q3.
“Main message for me is, we are on track to deliver 50,000 cars this year,” Ingenlath said in an interview with Yahoo Finance. “So the cars are produced, they're on the way to the customers, and we are cruising to the end of the year, delivering these cars.”
Polestar has been able to ramp up, hit its production goals, and also trim its operating expenses because of its asset light business model, developed with help from corporate parents like Volvo and Geely, which can use their manufacturing prowess to aid Polestar’s cause.
“Being a start-up that is backed by Volvo makes a difference,” Ingenlath said. “We can work with very experienced production, we can work with very, very established and experienced logistics.”
Sales have been relatively strong in the U.S., and it also doesn't hurt that the brand has found heavy interest from eco-conscious celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio and Sylvester Stallone.
Celebrities aside, a big part of the growth story for Swedish EV-maker is the Polestar 3 SUV, which is slated to arrive in late 2023. Polestar sees it a big volume seller.
“Especially here for the U.S.,” Ingenlath said of the Polestar 3’s domestic prospects. “Obviously, the size of the car, the luxurious premium interior, and how much space it offers, we're very much looking forward to have this car here. '23 will be the year when this comes off course, as well.”
Currently the Polestar 2 sedan/crossover is the main seller globally for the brand, but the Polestar 3 will likely overtake it. An interesting wrinkle for the Polestar 3 is that it will eventually be built in the U.S., starting in 2024. “It means such a milestone for us to go into production here in the U.S., having Charleston [South Carolina], the factory, taking the production of the Polestar 3 on. That's a big thing for us.”
Along with the Polestar 3, the company said its product pipeline will see new launches like the Polestar 4 SUV in 2023, the Polestar 5 grand touring sedan in 2024, and the Polestar 6 roadster in 2026.
Polestar’s ramp up in the U.S. and other large global markets signals its rise on the EV landscape, versus the traditional manufacturers like GM, Ford, and Volkswagen who are scaling their electric offerings, as well as the biggest player in the EV space, Tesla. With some production coming to the U.S., it will give the Swedish upstart some leverage to compete in the space, as it can then take advantage of both consumer and producer tax incentives for EVs, compliments of the Inflation Reduction Act.
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Pras Subramanian is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. You can follow him on Twitter and on Instagram.
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