Rivian: ‘We are not abandoning Georgia’
- by Detroit News
- Apr 27, 2024
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Executives for electric vehicle maker Rivian said Saturday the company remains committed to building a massive manufacturing plant 60 miles east of Atlanta despite a recent pause on construction.
The company recently pivoted its plans and is ramping up production of its new R2 SUV at its plant in Normal, Illinois. This caused some state politicians to worry that California-based Rivian would abandon its plans to build the sprawling factory site iI-20.
Thatâs not going to happen, Tony Sanger, vice president of facilities, said.
âBy pivoting to Normal, we created some concern in the market and certainly with the legislators as to that we were abandoning Georgia,â said Sanger, who has moved to Madison to live near the plant site. âAnd thatâs not the case. The news here is we are not abandoning Georgia. We will be back. We will be building because thatâs where we get the volume we need for these vehicles.â
Sanger sought to allay any concerns as Rivian showed off prototypes of three new EV models at its Ponce City Market showroom. The R2 SUV, with an expected starting price of $45,000, should hit the market in the first half of 2026. There is no timetable yet for the companyâs smaller SUVs â the R3 and R3x â but the company plans to eventually be producing all three of the SUVs at the Georgia factory, Sanger said.
But first, Rivian needs to produce the R2 at its existing factory in Illinois, he said.
âWe just needed to get these vehicles, which have had such a positive response in the market, into the hands of consumers faster,â Sanger said. âThe easiest way for us to do that and the most economical way for us to do that was to add capacity to the facility in Normal. ... Once weâve done that and have ramped that facility, weâll pivot back and build the facility here in Georgia.â
Rivian made waves in 2021 when it announced its planned $5 billion EV factory near Rutledge, what was at that time the biggest economic development project by jobs and investment in state history. The initial opening date had been scheduled for this year, but the timeline slipped.
In March, the company said it would put on hold vertical construction of the factory and instead shift production of the smaller R2 crossover it had planned to launch in Georgia to its existing factory in Illinois. The move should cut more than $2.2 billion in costs, the company has said.
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