Faraday Future starts EV production of FF 91 after months-long delay

(Reuters) -Faraday Future Intelligent Electric Inc said on Wednesday it has started production of its much-delayed first luxury electric car, FF 91 Futurist, at its California factory.

Last November, the Los Angeles-based electric-vehicle company had raised doubts about its ability to continue as a "going concern" and the delivery timeline for FF 91, shortly after it underwent a board reshuffle following a governance dispute with its largest shareholder.

Delivery of the sports utility vehicle was originally slated to start in late 2022.

"This shows that FF has entered a new phase under the governance and operation of the new board and management," founder YT Jia said in a statement.

Faraday Future shares rose 24% to $0.44 in premarket trading.

The FF 91 Futurist is expected to be offered in both the U.S. and China markets, with initial sales to begin in Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Shanghai and Beijing, the company said.

Deliveries in the U.S. will begin at the end of April 2023, a spokesperson for Faraday Future told Reuters, but did not give details on who the first customers would be.

The company has said the latest generation of its car had longer range and better acceleration than rivals such as Tesla Inc's Model X, Mercedes Benz Maybach S and Rolls Royce Cullinan.

(Reporting by Yana Gaur and Jyoti Narayan in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips, Uttaresh Venkateshwaran and Krishna Chandra Eluri)