Walmart Inc. of Bentonville on Tuesday announced an agreement to purchase 4,500 electric vehicles from Canoo Inc. to be used for final mile deliveries.
 

The agreement gives Walmart the option to purchase up to 10,000 vehicles from Canoo, which is moving its headquarters and a production facility to Bentonville. Purchases will begin with Canoo's Lifestyle Delivery Vehicle, an SUV-like model similar to what NASA has agreed to purchase from the company to transport astronauts to the launchpad.
 

The deal's total value was not included in a news release. According to Canoo's website, the non-commercial version of the vehicle starts at $34,750.
 

Walmart said the vehicles will be used to deliver online orders. The companies plan to begin deliveries in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in the coming weeks, ahead of the vehicle's official debut in 2023.

"Walmart's massive store footprint provides a strategic advantage in today's growing 'Need it now' mindset and an unmatched opportunity for growing EV demand, especially at today's gas prices," Canoo CEO Tony Aquila said in a news release.

 

The partnership between the two publicly traded companies will contribute to Walmart's goal of achieving zero-emissions by 2040.
 

David Guggina, Walmart's senior vice president of innovation and automation in the U.S., said the deal with its Bentonville neighbor allows the company to "collaborate and innovate in real-time, as well as the opportunity to aid in the creation of manufacturing and technology jobs here in our home state of Arkansas."