On Thursday, the electric vehicle (EV) start-up Canoo unveiled its new delivery van ahead of its public debut on Nasdaq this week. This multi-purpose delivery vehicle, or MPDV, is expected to start around $33,000
Canoo’s futuristic-looking van is designed for everything from last-mile deliveries to food trucks, according to the California company.
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Canoo: new multi-purpose van
Last Thursday, Canoo unveiled its multi-purpose electric van, designed to serve as a delivery vehicle, a food-truck, among other activities.
“There are many use cases that this vehicle can do,” Tony Aquila, the company’s Chairman and a significant investor in the company, said during a video.
“We wanted it to look very smart, very modern, but at the same time, be very affordable.”
Production of the vehicle is targeted to begin in 2022; even more, production is expected to ramp up in 2023. However, the company did not announce specific production plans.
In this regard, the start-up has only previously announced a strategic partnership with the auto supplier and contract manufacturer Magna International.
Canoo spokespeople said in the unveiling such commercial vehicles are anticipated to be a key driver for the sale of profitable EVs in the automotive industry.
Therefore, the company aims to pave the way for several other start-ups and automakers who want to enter rapidly in the coming years.
Paving the way
Many companies are already underway. For instance, Ford Motor, which leads commercial vehicle sales, plans to release an EV van in 2021, followed by an electric version of its F-150 pickup the following year.
Canoo said the MPDV would be available in two sizes with varying EV ranges and battery sizes. The range of its smaller van, known as MPDV1, is between 130 miles and 230 miles, while that of the larger van, MPDV2, is expected between 90 miles and 190 miles based on battery sizes.
The start-up is already receiving reservations and $100 refundable deposits for the vehicles on its website.
According to CNBC News, Canoo is part of a wave of new speculative EV start-ups that plan to enter the market after going public through reverse mergers strategies. These mergers are expected to be implemented with particular purpose acquisition companies, also known as blank-check companies.
In this regard, the company announced a merger deal with Hennessy Capital Acquisition Corp. in August.
On Tuesday this week, Canoo is expected to be listed on the Nasdaq as “GOEV.” Therefore, the deal would provide Canoo with approximately $600 million to support EVs’ production and launch.
This is Canoo’s second planned vehicle. The first was a smaller vehicle designed more for consumers and individual passengers. Such a model is expected to be available through a membership-only vehicle service beginning in 2022.
