EV Start-up Rivian Secures 2.65Bn Funding

Electric vehicle (EV) startup Rivian Automotive LLC which is among the most-anticipated challengers to Tesla and is backed by Amazon and Ford Motor, on Tuesday said it closed on a $2.65 billion investment round led by T. Rowe Price funds as the company moves closer to production of an all-electric pickup and SUV.

The company has raised about about $8 billion since 2019. Rivian closed on a $2.5 billion investment round last year, also led by T. Rowe Price; a $1.3 billion funding round in December 2019; and had raised at least $1.5 billion before that.

Other participants in the round included Fidelity, Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund, Coatue and D1 Capital Partners as well as several other existing and new investors, according tot he company. Rivian is expected to be among the first, if not the first, to bring an all-electric pickup to market later this year.

Rivian was set to launch its first two consumer vehicles, the R1T pickup truck and R1S SUV, last year, but postponed their release to this year due to the coronavirus pandemic. Even considering the delayed release date, Rivian will potentially be among the first finishers in the race to bring an electric pickup truck to market, beating out both Ford and Tesla.

This year, the EV maker also plans to begin rolling out electric delivery vans for Amazon. The e-commerce giant has already ordered 100,000 of them, Rivian said. The company will produce the R1T and R1S, along with the delivery vans, at a former Mitsubishi Motors plant in Normal, Illinois, which it is renovating to the tune of $750 million.