While the focus of Rivian’s recent press event was the unveiling of the new R2 and R3 models, it also announced plans to delay construction at its $5 billion Georgia factory and will initially start building the R2 at its plant in Normal, Illinois. Despite this move, Rivian chief executive and founder RJ Scaringe says the automaker remains committed to its Georgia site.
In an op-ed penned for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Scaringe noted that the decision to first build the R2 at its Illinois site will reduce the capital required for its launch by over $2.25 billion. It will also allow it to bring the new model to the market earlier than initially planned and put the company “in a stronger position to launch our Georgia plant.”
“Our Georgia plant remains an extremely important part of our strategy to scale production of R2 and R3,” Scaringe wrote. “Shifting its timeline later enables us to focus our teams on the capital-efficient launch of R2 in Normal.”
Read: Rivian Suspends $5 Billion Georgia Plant, Shifts R2 To Illinois
Scaringe says the brand is applying the lessons it learned from the launch of the R1 during the COVID-19 pandemic and supply chain shortages with its new models. He notes that “historically high-interest rates and geopolitical uncertainty” require Rivian to be mobile and adapt to the current environment. Prioritizing production at the site in Illinois will also help the firm in its path to profitability.
“We will care for the [Georgia] site in the run-up to construction with the goal of minimizing inconveniences this delay may cause,” Scaringe added. “To be clear, we are absolutely dedicated to bringing our Georgia plant to life with good jobs, economic development, and a product to be proud of. Georgia will be critical to taking R2 and R3 international, and it will be incredibly satisfying to see ‘assembled in Georgia’ on our future vehicles. We will continue to have a strong presence here, including through our Space at Ponce City Market in Atlanta and our service network, which supports the thousands of Rivian owners in the region.”
Rivian’s plant in Georgia will be split across the Morgan and Walton counties and is expected to employ 7,500 people. It will have the capacity to build 400,000 vehicles annually and will be the first new automotive assembly plant in the state since Kia built a factory there in 2006.
