eVTOL maker secures financing to complete high-volume manufacturing facility

Archer Aviation Inc., maker of the “Midnight” electric Vertical Take-off and Landing aircraft, announced that it has closed agreements with Synovus Bank and Evans General Contractors, LLC for the financing and development of its high-volume eVTOL manufacturing facility in Covington, Georgia. According to the company, the deals total at least $65 million, which represents a majority of the construction cost for the facility’s first phase.

Construction on the 350,000-square-foot facility has already begun, the company says. When complete, Archer anticipates that it will support production of up to 650 aircraft per year, making it the world’s largest eVTOL aircraft manufacturing facility by volume.

“Consistent with our capital efficient strategy of getting to commercialization, we’ve achieved attractive terms on the project,” said Archer’s Founder and CEO, Adam Goldstein. “These agreements, along with our already strong partnership with Stellantis, give us the flexibility to ramp up our capacity and become the leading scale manufacturer of eVTOL aircraft in the world.”

In addition to Stellantis, Archer is also partnering with aerospace suppliers, like Honeywell and Safran, for a majority of Midnight’s components, streamlining the manufacturing and assembly process, the company says, while allowing the facility achieve high output volumes.

According to the company, phase one construction is expected to be completed in 2024 ahead of Midnight’s planned entry into service in 2025. Phase two of the facility will expand the facility to approximately 900,000 square feet to support production of more than 2,000 aircraft per year, the company says.
www.archer.com