The electric vehicle manufacturer EV Electra has bought the rights to the Emily GT project, also called ‘the new Saab’, from NEVS (New Electric Vehicle Sweden) and could produce the sporty electric saloon in the former Saab factory in Trollhättan, Sweden.

Last August, we reported about the Emily GT, citing that an ‘unknown investor’ had probably purchased the NEVS Emily GT project. This investor is EV Electra, a Lebanese start-up producing electric cars.

+1 000 km range

The Emily GT is a sporty electric saloon with four 90 kW in-wheel motors and a more than 1 000 kilometers range thanks to a vast 175 kWh battery pack. EV Electra is planning to produce the Emily GT in Trollhättan, Sweden, where the Saabs of yesterday were built.

“We will have cars coming out of Trollhättan again. We made this acquisition fully aware that we will need to back it through development to mass production,” Jihad Mohammad, founder and CEO of EV Electra, is quoted as saying in a statement from NEVS.

The model is to be marketed under the name EV Electra Emily GT. Further details will be published at a later date. EV Electra is also acquiring PONS from NEVS, a previously unknown project for an autonomous urban mobility system.

EV Electra

EV Electra is referred to as a Canadian company in NEVS’ press release, but it is headquartered in Lebanon. The company’s business strategy mainly involves acquisitions. Two years ago, EV Electra announced an investment of over $500 million in a majority stake in Detroit Electric.

But we let EV Electra explain who they are: “EV Electra is the first electric automotive manufacturer with a Research & Development center initially based in Lebanon. The company was kicked off as a division of ‘Jihad Mohammad Investments’ to become an independent entity. Further outlets in Canada, Italy, Germany, and the Netherlands followed.”

And the company statement continues: “From day one, the purpose is to contribute toward a cleaner environment. EV Electra has committed itself to manufacturing Battery Electric Vehicles with zero emissions. We are committed to planting ten trees for every vehicle sold, and we will introduce a self-disinfecting system in every model to contribute to a safer pandemic-free world.”

Currently, EV Electra is offering three pompous BEVs called Quds Capital ES, Quds Nostrum E.E., and Quds Rise. The first is a 5-seater EV sedan with 400 hp and a 90-kWh battery pack.

The second is a sort of 4-seater coupé with large gullwing doors. It has the same 90 kWh battery pack, but thanks to twin 180 kW motors and a noticeable lightweight of 1 300 kg, it claims a top speed of around 400 kph, a 0-100 kph of about 2 seconds, and a range of 800 km.

Finally, the Rise is a two-seater roadster with a 150 kW engine and a 50 kWh battery, weighing 1 300 kg and having a range of 450 km.

NEVS

New Energy Vehicle Sweden (NEVS) began working on an electric version of the Saab 9-3 (called the 9-3EV), offering around 175 horsepower and 350 km of range. Despite some deliveries in 2018, the NEVS 9-3EV never reached the mass production stage.

Within the next two years, China-based Evergrande Group purchased a majority stake and eventually wholly acquired NEVS. In the same period, the Chinese conglomerate faced a series of financial woes, leading it to want to offload the recently acquired automaker. In 2023, to prevent bankruptcy, NEVS announced it would enter ‘hibernation mode’ and lay off 95% of its employees (320 out of 340).

In light of the ‘hibernation’ announcement, the team at NEVS decided to showcase one of their creations, the Emily GT. Sharing the car with the world was to reveal the firm’s technology and gain investors to save the company. They have succeeded.

And Saab?

The still iconic Saab name will not be used due to legalities. In 2014, Saab AB, the Swedish defense and aircraft specialist, withdrew the right to use the Saab name from NEVS. In 2016, a court ruled that the Saab name couldn’t be used for coming cars anymore as the name was in full possession of the airplane manufacturer Saab AB.