Mullen Automotive Inc., an emerging electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer, is beginning EV battery pack production out of its high-voltage battery R&D facility, located in Monrovia, Calif. The company is retrofitting this facility to accommodate the production of EV battery packs destined for Mullen’s EV vehicle lineup, including the ONE EV Cargo Van.
Mullen is undertaking this effort to reduce dependency on third-party suppliers and reduce the risk associated with material and supply shortages, which currently plague the automotive industry. By taking battery pack production in-house, Mullen will also lower costs and increase overall quality control in battery pack development.
Previously, CODA Automotive utilized the Monrovia facility (CODA Energy) for battery pack research, development and production of its U.S. homologated EV sedan, sold in the U.S. from 2012-18. Mullen purchased the assets from CODA in 2014 and took over the Monrovia high-voltage facility in 2017, renaming it Mullen Energy.
“Building our own battery packs makes sense as it reduces our reliance on third-party suppliers and lessens our risk of being subjected to the waves of supply and critical component shortages,” says David Michery, CEO and chairman of Mullen Automotive. “The entire industry is struggling with supply chain issues and the more control we have in-house, the better off our vehicle programs will be. Our Monrovia facility is already established for high voltage applications so retrofitting it for our battery pack development makes good sense for our company and shareholders.”
Mullen recently announced partnerships with hofer powertrain, Comau, ARRK, Dürr and DSA Systems for EV powertrain, engineering, manufacturing, vehicle production systems, and Over the Air (OTA) and vehicle system diagnostics, respectively.
