Foxconn Technology Group will be able to make good use of its electric-vehicle factory in Lordstown, Ohio, no matter how its dispute with Lordstown Motors Corp. is resolved, Chairman Young Liu said, Bloomberg News reported. Earlier this month, Lordstown Motors warned that it may be forced to cease operations after Foxconn said that it’s prepared to pull out of a production partnership with the EV maker. “We remain open to continued dialogue to find the best solution for each other,” Liu said in a post-earnings briefing yesterday. Foxconn agreed last year to invest as much as $170 million in Lordstown Motors, giving the company much-needed capital to build electrified trucks. The deal, along with the $230 million purchase of the former General Motors Co. factory in Ohio, is part of Foxconn’s plan to strengthen its position as a provider of EV production capacity and technology. “We are taking a multi-customer approach to optimize and allocate this capacity we have in Ohio,” Liu said, adding that the recently enacted Inflation Reduction Act has made the factory more attractive. “In the past couple of years, Foxconn has been proactively seeking customers. Now, the interest is two-way; we are also being approached by potential customers as well — I’m talking about traditional auto OEMs.” Lordstown Motors said in a May 1 filing that its deal with Foxconn could unravel after the Taiwanese company threatened to withhold funding, and that it was seeking alternative financing. Shares of Lordstown Motors have declined 68% this year.
