Rivian revamps its Amazon exclusivity settlement for EV supply vans

One of Amazon’s new electric delivery trucks from Rivian gets ready to exit the Amazon Distribution Facility on Cyber ​​Monday, November 28, 2022 in Aurora, Colorado.

Rj Sangosti | Denver Post | Getty Images

Rivian And Amazon are in talks to adjust the exclusivity clause of their agreement for the electric vehicle maker’s electric vans, a company spokeswoman said on Monday.

Removing the exclusivity portion of the agreement would allow Rivian to woo new customers while it works to ramp up production of the vans and its R1-series pickup and SUV. The company is also working on an upcoming R2 model and needs cash. Last week, Rivian announced plans to raise $1.3 billion through the sale of convertible bonds to fund the development and launch of R2.

Rivian spokeswoman Marina Norville said in a statement that the company’s relationship with Amazon is and remains positive.

“We continue to work closely together and, like many companies, navigate a changing economic climate,” she said.

Rivian and Amazon agreed in 2019 to hand over 100,000 electric trucks to the e-commerce giant. Amazon began delivering packages using the vehicles in July, and Rivian announced 10 million packages delivered via the vans last month.

But Amazon, Rivian’s largest shareholder, has since been stretched by its order numbers, telling Rivian it plans to buy about 10,000 vehicles this year — the low end of a previously mentioned range, according to the Wall Street Journal, which was first to announce the end of talks reported exclusivity.

Amazon said in a statement to CNBC that 10,000 vehicles was the original pledge and that the order size or partnership with Rivian has not changed.

“While nothing has changed as a result of our agreement with Rivian, we have always said that we want others to benefit from their technology in the long term because having more electric delivery vehicles on the road is good for our communities and our planet,” so Amazon spokesman said.

Rivian shares fell about 3% in early trading on Monday.

– CNBC’s Annie Palmer and John Rosevear contributed to this report.