Rivian Automotive CEO R.J. Scaringe said the company plans to launch electric commercial vehicles in a variety of shapes and sizes, and he expects Rivian to produce millions of electric vehicles per year in multiple plants after 2030. In an interview on July 21, before the official launch of the large EDV-700 delivery vehicle with Amazon, Scaringe said the RCV platform “will see a lot of other applications in the commercial space,” and that the RCV is the platform used by Amazon delivery vehicle produced by Rivian at its Normal, Illinois, plant.
We’re looking at getting into other commercial areas besides last-mile delivery,” Scaringe said. We’ve had a lot of discussions with other customers.” But he did not reveal the identities of those potential customers.
Scaringe’s vision for Rivian mirrors Elon Musk’s plans for Tesla, which also struggled in the first fifteen years as revenues and profits began to surge. Musk has said he wants Tesla to produce 20, 000,000 electric cars a year by 2030.
Rivian, which has been struggling to meet production goals for its R1T pickup truck and R1S SUV, recently said it has delayed some projects, including the overseas launch of the R1S, and may cut its workforce to reduce costs.
The California-based startup reported having more than $16 billion in cash at the end of the first quarter of this year, but analysts say it could run out of cash quickly at the current rate of cash burn projections.
Scaringe also said in the interview that Rivian is also planning to launch a smaller line of commercial vehicles that could share some parts with the company’s upcoming R2 electric crossover, which will begin production in 2025 at a new $5 billion plant in Georgia.
Scaringe also said he expects Rivian will be able to produce a million electric vehicles a year by 2030, “and hopefully after 2030 we’ll be able to produce more vehicles every year.”
He said, “To achieve that goal will require us to launch multiple models, different platforms and different sizes. Eventually, we’ll have to build multiple new plants in addition to our plant in Nordmore and the already announced Atlanta plant. We will have additional production facilities that will allow us to enter different market segments and expand.”
Amazon is Rivian’s largest shareholder, with a 20 percent stake in the company. The e-commerce giant has ordered 100,000 delivery vans from Rivian, which will be delivered by 2025. An Amazon executive said Rivian will not be the company’s only vehicle supplier, mentioning that Amazon has also entered into partnerships with Stellantis and Mercedes-Benz. In January, Amazon announced it would purchase thousands of electric versions of the Ram from Stellantis, in addition to the company’s order from Mercedes for vans for delivery included.
