GM Lordstown suitor Workhorse obtains $25M in financing

CINCINNATI — Workhorse Group Inc., an electric-vehicle company seeking to buy the idled General Motors complex in Lordstown, obtained $25 million from private investors.

The company obtained $15 million on May 31 and the remaining $10 million June 6.

The money will be used for general working capital and research and development.

“This funding provides Workhorse with sufficient capital to fully deliver on our existing backlog and will enable us to make significant strides in our strategic vision of being a leader in the electric last mile delivery space,” said CEO Duane Hughes. “We now have all necessary pieces in place to bridge Workhorse into full-scale N-GEN production and are looking forward to commencing the manufacturing process, in earnest, during the fourth quarter of this year.”

General Motors said in May the move to sell its Lordstown facility to electric vehicle-maker Workhorse “has the potential to bring significant production and electric vehicle assembly jobs to the plant.”

Terry Dittes, United Auto Workers’ national vice president, said, “The UAW’s position is unequivocal: General Motors should assign a product to the Lordstown facility and continue operating it. A federal lawsuit filed by the UAW over the closing of the Lordstown, Baltimore and Warren facilities is still pending, and the UAW will continue its effort to protect the contractual rights of its members at these locations.”

Workhorse Group Incorporated is a Cincinnati-based company that manufactures electric delivery and utility vehicles.

The company was founded in 1998 by investors who took of the production of General Motors’ P30/P32 series stepvan and motorhome chassis.

Its products include electric cargo vans, medium and light-duty pickup trucks and delivery drone systems.