Rivian is apparently in discussions with Amazon to make changes to its exclusivity clause in its deal for electric delivery trucks. The EV maker is seeking to adjust the exclusivity deal to bring in new customers. So let’s have a look.

A company spokesperson stated earlier this week that it is seeking to remove the exclusivity part of the agreement with the e-commerce giant. This would allow it to bring in new customers and clients that will enable it to ramp up production of its vans and its R1 series of pickup and SUV models. Furthermore, the brand is even working on a successor to the R1 series with the R2 model.

However, Rivian is still in need of money and the company is currently planning to raise 1.3 billion US Dollars. This would be done by a sale of convertible notes to help fund the R2 development and its subsequent launch. The company’s spokeswoman Marina Norville said in a statement that the company’s relationship with Amazon will still go strong and remains positive. She stated that “We continue to work closely together, and are navigating a changing economic climate, similar to many companies”.

For those unaware, Rivian and Amazon had entered into an agreement back in 2019 which would have the former deliver 100,000 electric trucks to the e-commerce giant. With these new electric delivery trucks, Amazon began delivery its packages with the new EVs and Rivian revealed last month that its vans have delivered over 10 million packages since its initial roll out.

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Back in March, we reported the rollout of Amazon‘s Rivian vans in San Francisco. Denver is now the third city in the United States that now enjoys deliveries by the Rivian Electric vans after San Francisco and Los Angeles. The partnership between Rivian and Amazon is certainly blossoming with the target rollout to other cities well underway.

California caught the first glimpse of the prototype vans after their launch after a partnership between Rivian and Amazon worth over $700 million. The timeline of the development of the vans saw Los Angeles as the first city where actual Amazon deliveries were carried out by the electric vans. San Francisco also joined the growing list of cities in March.

Amazon hopes to have up to 100,000 Rivian electric vans in the coming years. The logistics giant seeks to have a significantly reduced carbon footprint by the time it transits fully to EVs.

The choice of cities so far chosen for the Rivian delivery vans seems to be very strategic. For one, the climate and topography of Colorado will provide a firm testing template for the vehicles as a full rollout is being worked on. The vehicles have to be well-suited to withstand the elements across the country, whether in hot or cold climes. These are variables that need to be factored into the design of these vans, to be sustainable as a business model.

It is projected that up to 10,000 Rivian vans would have become operational in Amazon’s US fleet by 2022. Several other cities will also see these vans strutting across their motorways soon. The early tests in dense areas like Los Angeles seem to have been a success.

Rivian has seen a rise in its acceptability as a budding EV manufacturer. It also has a growing fan base in Colorado. The Rivan Adventure Network is an initiative the company has berthed in Colorado, with two charging stations planned for each of the state’s 42 parks. The first of these chargers will become operational as early as July.

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Amazon has begun testing its electric vehicles which are the product of its partnership with Rivian Automotive for delivery services in Los Angeles. Both companies released a joint statement on the event. Amazon had announced in 2019 that it will buy a hundred thousand Rivian vans in pursuit of its plans to accomplish zero carbon emissions within two decades.

The EV company Rivian has been able to mass up close to $8 billion from its investors since 2019 via its $2 billion Climate Pledge Fund.  Amazon has now begun testing some of the Rivian electric delivery vans on routes in Los Angeles. In October 2020,  Amazon had begun a test run of delivery vans and says the LA pilot program is expected to also roll out in16 other cities this year.

Ross Rachey, director of Amazon’s global fleet and products, in a statement, said that the company is proud of efforts at reducing its carbon footprint through the electrification of its logistics architecture. It has led to the installation of thousands of electric vehicle chargers and the realignment of the layout of delivery facilities in parts of North America and Europe.

Rivian produced the Amazon test delivery fleet at its headquarters in Plymouth, Michigan. Each van can drive up to 150 miles on a single charge and are still in a test phase, but production is slated for Q4 of 2021. 

Rivian on its own part is set to bring an all-electric pickup vehicle to the logistics market this year.

Rivian already has its gaze fixed at the top of the crowd in the EV manufacturing market. It hopes to be a serious challenger to Tesla. Light-duty trucks including delivery vans have been projected to be in demand in the U.S. in the after of the new policy direction of the Biden administration to embrace clean energy and replace the federal government’s fleet of internal combustion engine vehicles with EVs.

The huge demand outlay expected in the coming years has led many companies to ramp up their investment in EV technology.

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