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Rivian says it will build fewer vehicles this year than it did in 2023, the result of a supply chain problem that popped up in the third quarter that has “become more acute in recent weeks.”
The company did not specify what specific component is impacted. It only said that it is one shared by its R1 platform (which powers its pickup and SUV) and the RCV commercial van, and that it is located in the electric motors. The result is that Rivian now expects to finish 2024 having built between 47,000 and 49,000 vehicles, a big step down from the goal of 57,000 it was promoting as recently as July.
The company also delivered fewer EVs in the third quarter than it did in the second. Only 10,018 Rivian vehicles made it into customers’ hands in Q3, down from 13,970 in Q2. It didn’t offer an explanation for why deliveries fell, but Rivian says it still believes it can hit its full-year target of shipping between 50,500 and 52,000 vehicles.
The trouble comes at a precarious time for Rivian. Broadly the company has its eyes set on the launch of its lower-cost R2 SUV in 2026. But Rivian was already dealing with the fact that 2024 was likely to be a relatively flat year of growth compared to 2023. It’s therefore been in a cost-saving push. It laid off 10% of its workforce in February, and put plans to build a brand new facility in Georgia on hold. It also recently revamped its R1T pickup and R1S SUV, making them simpler in design in order to lose less money on each sale.
Sean O’Kane is a reporter who has spent a decade covering the rapidly-evolving business and technology of the transportation industry, including Tesla and the many startups chasing Elon Musk. Most recently, he was a reporter at Bloomberg News where he helped break stories about some of the most notorious EV SPAC flops. He previously worked at The Verge, where he also covered consumer technology, hosted many short- and long-form videos, performed product and editorial photography, and once nearly passed out in a Red Bull Air Race plane.
