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By Meg Flippin, Benzinga

Canoo Inc. (NASDAQ: GOEV), the high-tech advanced mobility company churning out fully electric lifestyle vehicles, just got the final nod from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) for its Oklahoma City operations to become the first automotive Foreign-Trade Zone in the state.

Foreign-Trade Zones (FTZs) are specially designated sites close to U.S. ports that importers and exporters use to move goods in and out of the country. Companies operating in FTZs pay reduced or zero duties, taxes or fees. FTZs help U.S. companies to compete better on the global stage by streamlining logistics, minimizing regulatory hurdles and better controlling inventory.

Perks offered for being In Oklahoma City’s FTZ include duty elimination on previously imported material, materials that are re-exported, rejected, scrapped, wasted or return-to-vendor imported material and sales of imported materials or finished products containing imported components to companies operating in other U.S. FTZs. Duties are deferred for manufacturing in the U.S. and selling domestically. Other perks include just-in-time delivery, quotas and reduced customs delays, as well as the ability to hold merchandise in a foreign-trade zone indefinitely.

Canoo Bolsters Oklahoma Plant

Canoo’s Oklahoma plant, which the company opened last April, occupies close to 500,000 square feet, with the ability to expand, and can employ over 500 people at capacity! Canoo recently added to the Oklahoma plant’s occupancy by migrating its engineering workforce from California to the state. Canoo said one of the main reasons for the move to Oklahoma is to have engineering and manufacturing under one roof. The company said the strategic decision will “drive operational efficiencies and foster greater collaboration as Canoo continues to meet goals towards its step level ramp manufacturing.”

That’s becoming a reality thanks in part to its two tranches of new or like-new advanced manufacturing assets, formerly owned by Arrival Automotive UK Limited, at its facility in Oklahoma City. The received assets will bolster in-house processes and enable higher cabin line production volumes in 2025, the company said.

“We thank Oklahoma City Customs Port Director Pequano and the Dallas U.S. Customs and Border Protection Area Port office for the work, support and direction for the activation approval. It's great to get this milestone completed as it's part of a larger strategy with more to come,” said Tony Aquila, Investor, Executive Chairman and CEO of Canoo. The company said the FTZ is a big deal toward “harmonizing” its supply chain and protecting it from the whims of other countries. Being in the FTZ also provides stability against a tariff landscape that has the potential to change in 2025.

Reimaging Fully Electric Vehicles

Canoo makes a suite of fully electric delivery vehicles (LDVs) that are built on a modular design. The modular electric platform is designed to maximize vehicle interior space, enabling it to be customizable across owners and applications. With a robust lineup of electric LDVs, including delivery vehicles, pickup and lifestyle vehicle (LV), Canoo is attempting to do to the commercial transportation market what Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) did to the consumer EV market with its lineup of sedans, SUV and truck. It doesn’t hurt that Canoo makes its LDVs with what it says are eco-friendly materials with the smallest footprint.

Canoo’s delivery vehicles are designed to be modular, built for global roads and a variety of commercial uses. Canoo is focused on driving value for fleets by reducing total cost of ownership and maximizing utilization through software solutions and customized upfitting. It also sticks to a clean, minimalist shape that has gotten recognition, most recently receiving several Red Dot Design Awards. The Red Dot Award is an annual international competition recognizing excellence in design and among the world’s largest design competitions, validating Canoo’s approach to design.

Learn more about Canoo Inc. by checking out its investors website here.

Featured photo courtesy of Canoo.

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