Current:Home > reviewsAutomaker Rivian pauses construction of its $5 billion electric truck plant in Georgia -Streamline Finance
Automaker Rivian pauses construction of its $5 billion electric truck plant in Georgia
EchoSense Quantitative Think Tank Center View
Date:2025-04-09 11:32:13
ATLANTA (AP) — The CEO of Rivian Automotive announced Thursday that the electric truck maker is pausing construction of its $5 billion manufacturing plant in Georgia to speed production and save money.
California-based Rivian had planned to start building its new R2 midsize SUVs at the Georgia site east of Atlanta. State and local governments offered an incentive package as large as $1.5 billion, one of the largest ever offered for an American auto plant
But as the company unveiled the new SUV and made the unexpected announcement of additional R3 and R3X crossover models at an event Thursday, CEO RJ Scaringe said production of the R2 will instead begin at Rivian’s existing plant in Normal, lllinois.
He said the move would allow Rivian to get the R2 to market more quickly, sometime in 2026. It would also save $2.25 billion in capital spending for now, Rivian said in a news release. The company has been burning through accumulated cash quickly, even as it hasn’t met production targets at its Illinois plant.
“Our Georgia site remains really important to us,” Scaringe said. “It’s core to the scaling across all these vehicles, between R2, R3 and R3X. And we’re so appreciative of all the partnership we’ve had there.”
Rivian did not give a timetable for restarting work on the Georgia plant, saying in a statement: “The timing for resuming construction is expected to be later.”
Rivian’s share price jumped after the company announced its new models, closing at $12.51, up 13%. That’s still far below the colossal stock valuation it held when it generated billions in a public offering in 2021. On the company’s first day of trading, Rivian shares closed at $100.73, giving it a total stock market valuation of almost $86 billion — at the time, bigger than Ford and slightly lower than General Motors.
The site near Social Circle has been expected to eventually hire 7,500 workers and produce up to 200,000 vehicles by the completion of its first phase later this year. A second planned phase would boost capacity for an additional 200,000 vehicles per year by 2030.
State and local governments were projected to spend more than $125 million to buy the nearly 2,000-acre (810-hectare) site near Social Circle for Rivian, clear trees and grade land, documents show. That work has been finished, with the state turning the site over to Rivian. The state also has completed most of $50 million in roadwork that it pledged. But signs for Rivian Parkway at a new traffic signal on U.S. 278 had been removed Thursday.
Rivian currently produces its R1T pickup truck, R1S SUV and electric delivery vans for commercial users at its Illinois factory. The R1 vehicles currently cost $70,000 or more. The original plan was to produce R2 vehicles in Georgia with lower price tags aimed at a mass market. The first phase of Rivian’s Georgia factory is supposed to make 200,000 vehicles a year, with a second phase capable of making another 200,000 a year. The company said last year that the first phase would start production this year.
State and local governments offered Rivian an incentive package worth an estimated $1.5 billion. The deadline for the company to complete its investment and hiring under that deal was extended to 2030, as Rivian said it would slow its pace of capital investment and as neighbors opposed to development of the Georgia site mounted legal challenges.
If the plant isn’t ultimately built, it would dent Gov. Brian Kemp’s goal of making Georgia a center of the electric vehicle industry. The pause at Rivian contrasts with rapid construction at Hyundai Motor Group’s $7.6 billion electric vehicle and battery complex near Savannah. The plant in Ellabell, announced in 2022, could grow to 8,500 employees. The company recently said it now aims to begin production later this year, instead of in 2025.
Kemp’s office declined comment, referring reporters to the Georgia Department of Economic Development.
“Rivian has restated its commitment to Georgia,” the state agency said in statement. It added that state and local economic development officials remain “in steady communication with Rivian regarding its manufacturing plans” in Georgia.
JoEllen Artz of Morgan Land, Sky & Water Preservation, a group that has backed legal battles opposing construction of the Rivian project, said she hopes the pause means the plant will never be built.
“I’m happy with a pause at least,” Artz said.
She said that since the state cut down trees and compacted a building pad for the plant, drainage problems have worsened on the site, with water standing after heavy rains. She said the state and county should have consulted with local residents and studied the site before pushing through with plans for Rivian. She also questions whether electric vehicle demand justifies the plant, and said Kemp should have pulled the plug.
“There were so many times he could have backed out gracefully and said this wasn’t the place,” Artz said.
veryGood! (24593)
Related
- Tropical weather brings record rainfall. Experts share how to stay safe in floods.
- Research shows most people should take Social Security at 70: Why you may not want to wait
- Judge finds woman incompetent to stand trial in fatal stabbing of 3-year-old outside supermarket
- Suspicious packages sent to election officials in at least 5 states
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Hi Hi!
- Kirk Cousins' record in primetime games: What to know about Falcons QB's win-loss
- How Sister Wives Addressed Garrison Brown’s Death in Season Premiere
- Low Boom, High Pollution? NASA Readies for Supersonic Test Flight
- Plunge Into These Olympic Artistic Swimmers’ Hair and Makeup Secrets
- Steve Gleason 'stable' after medical event during hurricane: What we know
Ranking
- What to watch: O Jolie night
- Baby Reindeer’s Nava Mau Reveals the Biggest Celeb Fan of the Series
- Giving away a fortune: What could Warren Buffett’s adult children support?
- 2 officers hospitalized, suspect dead after pursuit and shootout in Des Moines, Iowa, police say
- How breaking emerged from battles in the burning Bronx to the Paris Olympics stage
- After mass shooting, bill would require Army to use state crisis laws to remove weapons
- Georgia keeps No. 1 spot ahead of Texas in NCAA Re-Rank 1-134 as Florida State tumbles
- Wisconsin’s voter-approved cash bail measures will stand under judge’s ruling
Recommendation
From family road trips to travel woes: Americans are navigating skyrocketing holiday costs
Man accused of trying to kill Trump wrote a book urging Iran to assassinate the ex-president
Connie Chung talks legacy, feeling like she 'parachuted into a minefield' on '20/20'
Ja'Marr Chase's outburst was ignited by NFL's controversial new hip-drop tackle rule
Michigan lawmaker who was arrested in June loses reelection bid in Republican primary
Get $336 Worth of Tarte Makeup for $55 & More Deals on Top-Sellers Like Tarte Shape Tape & Amazonian Clay
Five college football Week 3 overreactions: Georgia in trouble? Arch Manning the starter?
Who plays on Monday Night Football? Breaking down Week 2 matchup