- The state of Illinois awarded Rivian a large incentive package to support the expansion of its factory in Normal, Illinois.
- The money will be used to prepare the factory for production of the R2, Rivian’s upcoming midsize electric SUV.
- While production of the R2 was originally planned in Georgia, this deal shifts the focus to the Illinois factory.
Rivian has received an incentive package worth $827 million (equivalent to £660 million or €771 million at today’s exchange rates) from the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity. The funds will be used to support the Normal factory, where the R1S and R1T are built.
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The electricity startup said the money will be used to expand the power plant, improve public infrastructure and train its workforce. These steps are performed in preparation for production of the 2026 R2 SUV.
More: Rivian R2 costs about $45,000 and outperforms Tesla Model Y at 60 mph
The model was introduced at the beginning of the year and follows in the footsteps of the R1S. It will ride on an all-new platform and be offered with two different battery packs, including one that offers a range of more than 300 miles (483 km). Rivian has also said that we can expect single, dual, or triple engine configurations, as well as a starting price of around $45,000.
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Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe said, “The state’s support will allow us to quickly bring our R2 midsize SUV to market and offer consumers an even greater choice of electric vehicles.” He then thanked the state of Illinois as well as the Gov. JB Pritzker, state Sen. Don Harmon and state Speaker Emanuel Chris Welch.
The automaker has built more than 100,000 vehicles at the plant and invested more than $2 billion (£1.6 / €1.9) in the facility. The company also claims to have “added over $3.9 billion (£3.1 / €3.6) in value to the local economy, resulting in greater development of the region.”
The news will likely upset residents of the Peach State, since the R2 was originally scheduled to be built in Georgia. However, as the automaker explained in March, building the crossover in Normal significantly reduces the “capital requirement to bring in.” [the] Bring R2 to market” and “significantly reduce the risk of bringing it to market”.
While construction of the Georgia plant was paused, the automaker said it remains “an extremely important part of its strategy to scale production” in the long term.
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