Lotus has just announced the end of its technical partnership with Williams Advanced Engineering. It was working on developing the Evija electric hypercar, the most powerful production car in history (2,000 hp). Williams brought both his experience in high voltage systems and the field of batteries to the project.
“When the program entered its final stages before lockdown, Lotus chose to develop the project in-house due to several delivery issues from Williams Advanced Engineering. Lotus will complete and improve the program internally. The result will be a better product as we introduce not only the world’s most powerful production car but also the world’s best electric car for drivers.“
For his part, Williams has claimed that the Lotus decision is “unlawful and without any legal basis.” Also, it wanted to clarify that Lotus’s allegations about possible violations of the terms of its contract are false and artificial. Thus, the English company has taken legal action against Lotus for unjustified dismissal and will seek to collect compensation for Lotus’s defaults since April of this year.
The engineering company claims that its former partner’s decision puts many UK jobs at risk and even the launch of the Evija itself, which was recently delayed to market because the relevant open road tests could not be performed during the worst months of the pandemic.
According to Williams, the project is in its final stages as he has continued to work on its development despite setbacks in recent months. “WAE wants to make it clear that this issue has no impact on its existing projects, clients, and partners.”