Rivian Automotive got $827 million from Illinois to expand its Normal facility. The company is based in Irvine, California. Their shares went up almost 10% on Thursday afternoon. This year, their shares dropped over 60%.
In Illinois, Rivian makes electric delivery vans for Amazon.com, its biggest investor. The plant there can make 150,000 vehicles each year. They plan to make their new midsize SUV R2 at the same plant. This SUV, revealed in March, will compete with Tesla’s Model Y. With the R2, Rivian can make a total of 215,000 vehicles every year.
The money from Illinois will be used to expand the plant, improve public infrastructure, and train workers. Rivian had about $7.86 billion in cash and cash equivalents by the end of last year.
At first, Rivian planned to spend $1.75 billion in 2024 for a second facility near Atlanta, Georgia. But they stopped building it for now. Rivian says Georgia is still an important part of their long-term plan. They will restart construction later.
Last year, Rivian raised over $3 billion with two bond issuances. But some experts say they might need more money by 2026. They will share their first-quarter results next week.
