Archer seeks US$400m additional funding for initial production of Midnight aircraft
November 8, 2024
Closing Q3 with over US$500 million in cash and cash equivalents, eVTOL developer Archer has revealed in its Q3 results that it is now seeking US$400 of additional funding from Stellantis to help scale the manufacturing of its Midnight aircraft.
The additional funding is in the wake of a further EBITDA loss of US$93.5m for the quarter. Of the US$1.955 billion Archer has raised from investors so far, it has spent US$1.487 billion so far.
In more positive news, Archer also declared in its Q3 2024 results that its manufacturing facility is set for completion in the coming weeks with a focus going into 2025 on building piloted type-design aircraft for use in testing and early commercial deployment. The results come off the back of Archer establishing a consortium led by the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) to launch commercial air taxi services in the UAE as early as Q4 2025 and an agreement with Soracle (a joint venture between Japan Airlines and Sumitomo Corporation) to purchase up to 100 Midnight aircraft in a deal worth US$500 million.
“Over the past six years we have established the foundation to allow Archer to seamlessly transition from concept to commercialisation,” said Adam Golddsten, Archer’s founder and CEO.
“As we enter the final stretch of bringing Midnight to market, our strategy is paying off in the form of strong certification progress, the eVTOL industry’s most mature scalable manufacturing facility in the US and launch plans that are solidifying in the US and abroad,” he continued.
Although the company has yet to build a protoype of its eVTOL it remains optimistic about an early certification, expecting construction to begin in early 2025. It is also nearing completion of Phase 3 of the FAA’s four-phase type certification process while continuing to rapidly advance through Phase 4, the final phase to secure type certification.
With Archer’s US$65 million manufacturing plant nearing completion, the company’s focus is on building type-design aircraft for use in testing and early commercial deployment. It expects to begin production in early 2025 with ambitions to produce two aircraft per month by the end of the year.
Archer reaffirmed its commitment to starting operations in the UAE by the end of 2025, signalling that UAE certification may come before an FAA one has been issued.
