With the announcement of its Dubai Studio, luxury electric vehicle maker Lucid Group has opened its first retail space in the UAE.
It is the California-based EV company’s second retail showroom in the Middle East, its first being located in Riyadh.
“The expansion of Lucid into the UAE is a significant milestone for the company,” said Faisal Sultan, vice president and managing director of Lucid Middle East.
“The region continues to build momentum in its shift towards sustainable energy, emerging as a key market in EV ownership.”
Several weeks before the opening of Lucid’s first UAE retail location, the company had a significant presence at the Electric Vehicle Innovation Summit (Evis) in Abu Dhabi, where its flagship Lucid Air sedan was on display in various iterations.
During Evis, Mr Sultan spoke to The National and hinted that the opening of a Dubai location would soon bolster the company’s presence and commitment in the Middle East.
“The GCC is a core part of our strategy,” he explained. “This market is all about luxury goods, so when you bring in a sustainable product into a market with a luxury angle to it, you definitely have to have the GCC and Middle East as one of your core markets.”
The opening of Lucid’s Dubai retail space comes about a year after the EV maker opened its first international manufacturing plant in Saudi Arabia.
Currently, vehicle kits from Arizona arrive at the Saudi Arabia plant, where they are later assembled.
The factory, which is about an hour north of Jeddah, has a capacity of 5,000 vehicles annually.
“You know our bigger plan is to have a CBU plant [complete build unit] nearby. It will be ready later this decade and it will have 150,000 vehicle capacity,” he added.
The Lucid Air EV sedan has received ample critical acclaim in recent years.
It won the much-coveted MotorTrend Car of the Year award in 2022, US News and World Report’s 2023 Best Luxury Electric Car award, and the 2024 Best Luxury EV award from Top Gear.
Along with the critical acclaim, however, comes stiff competition in the burgeoning electric vehicle sector.
“We’re a new company and market share will grow,” said Mr Sultan. “We are very confident with our car and we are growing markets. That's how you get market share – you basically go into the market,” he added, alluding to the high hopes for the company’s retail presence in the UAE.
“That will give us another sales point, another place to get some volume out.”
Mr Sultan also spoke about Lucid Group’s future products, such as a seven-seater electric SUV named Gravity.
“We’re on target to to get that out this year in the US and Canada,” he said. “And then eventually next year at some time in these markets [UAE and Saudi Arabia]."
Mr Sultan also explained that Lucid was also looking beyond the UAE and Saudi Arabia for target markets.
“Hopefully, in the next couple of years, other GCC countries [are] also in the plans,” he said.
Lucid’s Dubai Studio is located in the City Walk shopping area and district.
“Every studio offers a digitally oriented luxury experience tailored to each customer’s preferences, whether they visit in person, make inquiries entirely online or combine the two,” according to a statement from Lucid Group.
“Lucid studios allow customers to experience the brand and learn about its products in settings that highlight the company's distinctive design style.”
The company also intends to open its first service centre in Dubai.
In total, Lucid Group has 38 retail studio locations around the world.
Over the past decade, electric vehicles have gained momentum in the consumer marketplace. Sales of overall electric vehicles exceeded 10 million in 2022, according to the International Energy Agency.
The agency's data also shows that the share of electric vehicles in total car sales more than tripled in three years to 14 per cent in 2022, from 4 per cent in 2020.
Yet the EV sector is not immune from traditional struggles of the automotive industry.
EV maker Tesla recently announced plans to reduce its global workforce by 10 per cent amid increased competition and declining sales.
Tariffs and a lack of a charting infrastructure in some areas have also blunted widespread EV adoption.
According to a regulatory filing, Lucid Group also announced coming layoffs of about 400 people before the launch of the company's Gravity SUV.
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
Sunday's fixtures
- Bournemouth v Southampton, 5.30pm
- Manchester City v West Ham United, 8pm
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
Wicked: For Good
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5
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World Cricket League Division 2
In Windhoek, Namibia - Top two teams qualify for the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe, which starts on March 4.
UAE fixtures
Thursday February 8, v Kenya; Friday February 9, v Canada; Sunday February 11, v Nepal; Monday February 12, v Oman; Wednesday February 14, v Namibia; Thursday February 15, final
The biog
Favourite colour: Brown
Favourite Movie: Resident Evil
Hobbies: Painting, Cooking, Imitating Voices
Favourite food: Pizza
Trivia: Was the voice of three characters in the Emirati animation, Shaabiyat Al Cartoon
Company Profile
Company name: Big Farm Brothers
Started: September 2020
Founders: Vishal Mahajan and Navneet Kaur
Based: Dubai Investment Park 1
Industry: food and agriculture
Initial investment: $205,000
Current staff: eight to 10
Future plan: to expand to other GCC markets
Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany
- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people
- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed
- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest
- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France
RACECARD
4.30pm Jebel Jais – Maiden (PA) Dh60,000 (Turf) 1,000m
5pm: Jabel Faya – Maiden (PA) Dh60,000 (T) 1,000m
5.30pm: Al Wathba Stallions Cup – Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 2,200m
6pm: The President’s Cup Prep – Conditions (PA) Dh100,000 (T) 2,200m
6.30pm: Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club – Prestige (PA) Dh125,000 (T) 1,600m
7pm: Al Ruwais – Group 3 (PA) Dh300,000 (T) 1,200m
7.30pm: Jebel Hafeet – Maiden (TB) Dh80,000 (T) 1,400m
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
Tell Me Who I Am
Director: Ed Perkins
Stars: Alex and Marcus Lewis
Four stars
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
