It looks like talks between General Motors and Rivian could be in trouble as Bloomberg is reporting the discussions have reached an “impasse.”
Details are limited, but the publication says talks broke down within the past two weeks. Nothing is official, but one source suggested Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe wanted to “keep his options open” as several other companies are interested in the automaker.
Both companies have been coy on the negotiations, but GM spokesman Pat Morrissey told Bloomberg “Talks occur on a regular basis in the auto industry between a variety of partners, but as a matter of policy we don’t discuss who, where or when those discussions might occur.” While Morrissey didn’t confirm discussions with Rivian, he did praise the automaker.
The details of the talks are unclear, but it’s believed GM was interested in purchasing a stake in Rivian and using the company to speed up the development of its own electric trucks and crossovers. This is important to GM as the company was dismissive about electric pickups until Ford confirmed plans for an electric F-150. Now, GM has to respond and it’s playing catch up.
GM hasn’t said much about its electric truck plans, but Bloomberg says the company’s next-generation electric vehicle technology wasn’t designed to be used on pickups. Instead, it’s focused on cars and crossovers. If this is correct and GM can’t strike a deal with Rivian, the automaker might have to make significant investments to build an electric truck of their own.
Regardless of what happens, Rivian is slated to launch its R1T pickup in 2020. The truck will have four electric motors, three battery capacities and outputs ranging from 402 hp (300 kW / 408 PS) to 753 hp (562 kW / 764 PS).
