Volvo, Lucid, and Nissan share plans to drive growth, boost operations

Volvo Cars, Lucid Group, and Nissan Motor Co. have announced organizational and operational changes that both companies say will drive growth.

Volvo held an event for investors on Thursday during which management outlined plans to resolve three key business challenges: growing the company through electrification, reaching a long-term EBIT margin of over 8%, and building strong positive cash flows.

“Electrification is an opportunity for us and the main driver for growth,” said Håkan Samuelsson, Volvo Cars president and CEO, in a press release from the OEM. “In a hypercompetitive industry, our unique relationship with Geely is also a strong asset for creating a better cost structure and developing attractive regional cars.”

An important enabler for electrified growth is the upcoming EX60 mid-size SUV, which the company plans to unveil in January. Moving forward, Volvo says it will focus on improving EV range and charge time and offering pricing similar to internal combustion engine vehicles.

“The EX60 is Volvo Cars’ electric entry in the most important segment globally, enabling Volvo Cars to substantially increase its addressable market and electric market share,” the release states. “The company is confident that the coming EX60 is a game-changer in terms of price, performance, and cost.”

Volvo says it’s taking a regionalized approach and commercial strategy with competitive and adaptive offerings for each of its markets, along with a new customer-centric sales model and marketing approach.

Volvo Chief Financial Officer Fredrik Hansson added, “The key building blocks for profitable electrified growth are variable cost reductions supported by hardware synergies with Geely, further indirect cost reductions, and structurally lower investments.”

The continued reduction of variable costs through intensified joint hardware sourcing via Volvo’s collaboration with Geely will reduce costs in the coming years, according to the release.

“Volvo Cars will also benefit from structurally reduced indirect costs, including through an expanded use of the software stack powering all its software-defined cars,” the release states. “By expanding this to hybrids in the future, this unlocks further efficiencies.

“Additionally, stringent cost discipline following its SEK 18 billion [$1.9 billion] cost and cash action plan will further support profitability. The company is finalising major investments in new technology and infrastructure, allowing it to reduce investments to an affordable level.”

Lucid to ‘streamline’ operations

On Wednesday, Lucid Motors announced management changes that it says are designed to accelerate growth, streamline decision-making, and enhance accountability as the company scales globally.

Lucid has made the following organizational changes:

• • Emad Dlala appointed as senior vice president of engineering and digital: Leads powertrain organization and oversees all product development functions, including vehicle engineering, digital systems, and software. Lucid says the expanded role will “drive the company’s technology leadership, lead vehicle development, improve cost efficiency and manufacturability, and advance software-defined vehicle architectures.”
  • Erwin Raphael promoted to senior vice president of revenue, with expanded global responsibilities: Leads global sales and service operations, “driving accountability for revenue and customer experience as Lucid expands further into new consumer markets worldwide.”
  • Marnie Levergood appointed as senior vice president of quality: Leads efforts to “ensure Lucid delivers vehicles that meet the highest standards of quality and craftsmanship, working in close concert with engineering and manufacturing.”

“As we accelerate production of Lucid Gravity and prepare to launch our midsize platform, these changes will help drive faster innovation and stronger execution,” said Marc Winterhoff, Lucid’s interim CEO, in a press release from the OEM. “Emad has played a key role in establishing Lucid as the EV technology leader. In his new expanded role overseeing complete vehicle development, we have no doubt his leadership will broaden our technology excellence, improve software quality, manage costs, and keep projects on schedule.

“As we grow globally, Erwin’s leadership will be critical to delivering exceptional customer experiences and driving revenue growth. And Marnie brings decades of experience that further strengthens our leadership team.”

As part of these changes, Eric Bach, senior vice president of product and chief engineer, left Lucid after 10 years with the company, according to the release.

Lucid also released its Q3 earnings results on Wednesday.

Q3 revenue was $336.6 million, up 68% compared to Q3 2024, and 4,078 vehicles were delivered — a 47% increase over Q3 2024. Nearly 3,900 vehicles were produced in Q3, up 116% compared to Q3 2024.

During the quarter, Lucid announced a strategic collaboration with NVIDIA to co-develop next-generation Level 4 autonomous driving technology, which it says positions it at the forefront of intelligent, software-defined vehicle development and makes it one of the first OEMs to offer Level 4 autonomous driving capabilities.

Also during Q3, Lucid says it:

• • Delivered its first vehicles to Nuro for further development of a robotaxi engineering fleet — a “key milestone” in its Uber robotaxi partnership — and announced the initial rollout of the service beginning in 2026 in San Francisco.
  • Received Uber’s $300 million strategic investment, “strengthening alignment around shared goals in premium electric and autonomous transportation.”

“We maintained strong operational momentum this quarter, delivering solid results in both production and customer deliveries,” said Winterhoff, in a press release. “Our team remains intensely focused on ramping up production and addressing the significant supply chain disruptions impacting the entire industry.

“At the same time, we continue to advance our position in autonomy and intelligent mobility, from our robotaxi partnership to our new collaboration with NVIDIA, positioning Lucid to be among the first to bring Level 4 autonomous driving to privately owned passenger vehicles. And as we work toward key milestones in the coming quarters, today’s organizational changes will accelerate innovation, empower decisive action, and ensure Lucid is best positioned for global expansion.”

Nissan ‘recovery plan’

Alongside its first-half results, Nissan provided an update on Thursday about its ongoing “Re:Nissan” plan, “reaffirming its commitment to achieve positive automotive operating profit and free cash flow by fiscal year 2026,” a press release from the OEM says. It says the recovery plan has gained traction.

Nissan said its full-year outlook confirms operating profit will break even excluding tariff impacts.

Nissan says it has identified 200 billion yen ($1.4 billion) in potential variable cost savings. The savings are driven by thousands of innovative ideas that the OEM says are now moving from concept to implementation, to ensure sustainable savings without compromising quality, safety, or performance.

Fixed cost reductions have delivered over 80 billion yen in the first half and are on track to exceed 150 billion yen by the end of the fiscal year. Nissan says it’s confident it will surpass its 250 billion yen target by fiscal year 2026. Six of seven plant site actions are complete, and engineering cost-per-hour improvement stands at 12% toward a 20% goal, alongside significant reductions in parts complexity, according to the release.

Proceeds from the sale and leaseback of Nissan’s global headquarters in Yokohama will be reinvested to modernize facilities and support future growth under the Re:Nissan plan.

“Nissan is now shifting focus to the next phase: redefining its product-market strategy and reinforcing partnerships,” the release says. “Momentum is building with strong recognition for new-generation models like LEAF and Roox, with more launches planned through fiscal 2027. This strategy ensures innovation and customer appeal across key markets, driving sustainable growth.”

Ivan Espinosa, Nissan’s president and chief executive, added, “Our first-half results reflect the challenges we face, yet they confirm that Nissan is firmly on the path to recovery. The second half will bring its own hurdles, but with focus, discipline, and the actions underway, I am confident we will deliver stronger results. Balancing optimism with prudent risk management under Re:Nissan, we are accelerating toward the future—prioritizing new products, key markets, and breakthrough technologies that will define Nissan’s next chapter.”

Images

Featured illustration credit: everythingpossible/iStock

Volvo slides part of Nov. 6, 2025, investor presentation, found here.