Rivian raises US$2.65b as EV production nears

Rivian has raised US$2.65 billion as it prepares to begin production later this year of its electric ute.

The round, which was led by funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates Inc., also included Fidelity Management and Research Company, Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund (Amazon has ordered 100,000 Rivian delivery vans), Coatue and D1 Capital Partners along with several other existing and new investors, Tech Crunch reports.

Rivian is now valued at about $27.6b and is gearing up for the production of the R1T ute and R1S SUV while also establishing its EV charging network in the US.

Founder and chief executive RJ Scaringe says the investor support allows Rivian to remain focused on its EV launches and expanding the business to the next stage.

Amazon led an earlier US$700 million funding round, while further investments include US$500m from Ford with plans to work together on a future EV programme, and $350m from Cox Automotive.

Further capital raising followed with Rivian now raising US$8b since early 2019.

Rivian has poured more than US$1b into its Normal factory in Illinois which once produced Mitsubishi vehicles.

The factory is being revamped with a pilot line operational and ute prototypes being produced.

Delivery vans for Amazon will also be made there with the first due at Amazon later this year.