Electric vehicle maker Canoo Inc. could be required to repay $1 million in Oklahoma  job creation incentives after closing factories in the state. 

Canoo received the incentive payment in January after announcing it had created over 100 new jobs in Oklahoma. The money came from Oklahoma’s Quick Action Closing Fund, an incentive program that allows the governor to recruit new employers to the state with direct cash payments. 

Canoo’s contract with the Oklahoma Department of Commerce requires the company to repay state incentive money if it fails to keep at least 80% of those jobs for 18 months.

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The company announced Wednesday it had furloughed 82 employees and closed factories in Oklahoma City and Pryor while it looks for a new source of funding. 

“We regret having to furlough our employees, especially during the holidays, but we have no choice at this point,” Canoo said in a statement. “We are hopeful that we will be able to bring them back to work soon.”

Canoo disclosed in a regulatory filing on Dec. 14 that it would need to raise “substantial additional capital” to continue operating through the end of the year.

The company did not respond to emailed questions about the status of its state incentives from The Frontier.

An Oklahoma Department of Commerce official said the agency would try to recoup incentive money if necessary.

“After finding out about Canoo’s decision to furlough employees and idle its Oklahoma City Factory, we are taking steps to protect taxpayers, and if necessary, will explore avenues to clawback public dollars,” said Evan Brown, executive director of the Office of Economic Development, Growth, and Expansion. 

Oklahoma has approved Canoo to receive about $100 million in state incentives over the next decade. But the company has only collected $1 million as it has struggled to launch full-scale production. Oklahoma’s incentives are all performance-based, meaning companies only receive payments for jobs and investment they have already created in the state.

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