Rivian Opening An Electric Vehicle Plant in Georgia.

Rivian is an American company that produces electric vehicles and automotive technology. The company is known as Rivian Automotive Inc. Presently, Rivian Automotive is building a Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) and a pickup truck on a skateboard platform that can support other cars and be used by other companies. The company was founded in 2009 by Robert “RJ” Scaringe with the name Mainstream Motors. In 2011, it was renamed Avera Automotives and finally to Rivian Automotive. They focus mainly on autonomous and electric vehicles.

Rivian to Open Manufacturing and Vehicle Plant in Georgia

The company has unveiled plans to open a manufacturing plant in Georgia. Rivian is based originally in Irvine, California. It has a manufacturing plant in Normal, Illinois, as well as other facilities in different parts of California, Michigan, British Columbia, Arizona and the United Kingdom.

Georgia is Rivian’s new site of interest. Rivian plans to build a five billion ($5,000,000) dollar battery and assembly plant. The location chosen for this project is Georgia, east Atlanta precisely. This new plant is expected to employ as many as 7,500 workers and more.

According to official announcements by Rivian, the new $5 billion facilities east of Atlanta, Georgia, will be capable of producing up to 400,000 vehicles a year. It is worth noting that this is more than double the capacity of its existing plant in Bloomington-Normal, Illinois.

Full-scale production is supposed to start at the new Georgia factory in 2024. In the meantime, Rivian is also upgrading its original plant in Normal, Illinois. This is after recently getting approval for a 623,000-square-foot expansion. This expansion will bring the Normal factory to 4 million square feet, which is the same as almost 92 acres. In the future, Rivian will hire 800 to 1000 employees at the Normal plant by the second quarter of next year. This is in view of the company’s plan to continue its rapid growth.

Its projected over 7,000 openings between its EV assembly and battery plant in Georgia is a record high. It is higher than the average plant for cars using gas. This is mainly because Rivian, like Tesla, will produce more of its vehicles’ components and not purchase them.

The jobs multiplier likely won’t be quite as great as Kia when they entered Georgia. Kia attracted dozens of suppliers that created thousands of spinoff jobs across Georgia and its environs. This was after it announced its factory in West Point about fifteen (15) years ago.

Rivian’s battery operations would most likely partner with the electronics giant Samsung. Samsung is already an existing supplier, according to some people with more profound knowledge of the matter. This singular partnership could potentially sideline Rivian’s future Georgia neighbor, SK Innovation. You should also know that battery packs typically are the most expensive EV components.

Electric Vehicle Plants

However, if the histories of Tesla and other EV startups are guides, Rivian will encounter bumps in the road on its way to mass production. Especially mass productions at its plants in Illinois and Georgia. EV giants Tesla encountered costly and time-consuming manufacturing bottlenecks and quality-control issues with several models. Tesla models, including its popular Model 3 sport sedan and Model Y crossover, were not left out. Some of these issues have not been totally eradicated as they continue to grapple with some all these years later. Rivian will have to learn the ropes of mass production nonetheless. While Rivian is on that, competitors like Tesla continue expanding their manufacturing capacity. Simultaneously, other big EV companies would be investing billions in bringing new EVs to market.

On the economic side, employment from production and manufacturing has been very consistent in Georgia in recent years. The nearly 400,000 employments around Georgia from Manufacturing make up over 8% of total jobs in the state as of October, according to Labour Statistics. This is also about the same number seen about 10 years ago, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics records.

Nonetheless, many employers are struggling to find workers to fill vacant positions. Georgia’s unemployment rate hit a historic low of 2.8% in November 2021. Going forward, the region’s unemployment rate surrounding the future Rivian plant was a little over 2% as of October, state labor data show.

Expectations from many are the same or more like that of Kia and growth in the areas near the border of Alabama as an example of the growth the region corridor could see from Rivian. 

Rivian Models

Rivian has two main models in the market, R1S and R1T. Rivian has gained a great deal of positive buzz these days. Mainly due to its recent IPO stock offering, plans to build a new plant and it heralded as the “next Tesla.” The EV automaker has already released the R1T electric truck, and the release of the R1S electric SUV will be in early 2022. Let’s see a few things about the R1T and R1S.

The Rivian R1T and R1S, as expected, are very similar. Of course, they are electric truck and SUV versions of the same vehicle. However, with different body types, there are some significant notable differences.

In terms of driving range, the R1T has a better performance. With a full charge, it can go up to 316 miles. The R1S can go up to 314 miles on a full charge. In addition, R1S and R1T will come up with better range models in 2022. We should expect a range of over 400 miles depending on the company’s improvement.

In terms of space and comfort, if you want an electric vehicle that can carry many passengers, then the R1S is the better choice for you. It comes with three rows of seating; it can seat up to seven people. On the other hand, the R1T, with its two rows of seating, has a five-passenger seating capacity.

Finally, off-road abilities are one of the major selling points for Rivian R1T and R1S. They both come fully equipped with a quad-motor all-wheel-drive system. With this system, electric vehicles can confidently travel over challenging terrains with ease. Both models have an adjustable air suspension. This air suspension can raise and lower the vehicle’s height, with ground clearance up to 14.9 inches. Additionally, the R1T and R1S have different modes for different driving and terrain conditions. These modes include Conserve, Sport, All-Purpose, Off-Road Auto, Off-Road Rock Crawl, Off-Road Drift, Off-Road Rally, and Tank Mode.

Georgia will enjoy being a home to Rivian!