Rivian could build EVs in Australia

Start-up North American EV-maker Rivian has already confirmed it will eventually sell its electric pick-up and SUV models in Australia, and now it has announced plans to produce them in the Asia-Pacific region – and perhaps even in Australia.

Beating Ford, General Motors and Tesla in the race to produce an all-electric full-size pick-up, the first Rivian R1T ute rolled off the company’s production line in Normal, Illinois, last month and will be joined by the closely related R1S electric SUV in early 2022.

Rivian has already trademarked both models for our market and is on the record as saying an Australian launch should follow its US launch by about 18 months.

Both vehicles were also spotted arriving in Sydney late last month as part of what’s believed to be a local durability testing program in both Australia and New Zealand.

Now, as part of its Initial Public Offering (IPO) published in the US this week, Rivian has revealed plans to ‘localise’ assembly of its vehicles in the regions they are sold outside the US as part of its international expansion plans.

Rivian said countries in Western Europe would be the first markets outside North America to receive its products, but next on the list would be Asia-Pacific markets including Australia.

In addition, Rivian said it will establish new factories in each region as part of its plan to meet global demand by expanding its manufacturing footprint.

“Our launch is focused on the US and Canadian markets. We intend to enter Western European markets in the near term, followed by entry into major Asia-Pacific markets,” said Rivian in its IPO.

“To serve our global demand, we plan to localise production and supply chains in these regions.”

Of course, that’s not confirmation that Rivian will produce the R1T or R1S here, where high-volume auto manufacturing ceased in 2017, but ‘local’ production could lead to lower prices – especially if Rivian joins Tesla in producing vehicles in China, due to lower labour and shipping costs.

In the US, Rivian R1T pricing starts at $US67,500 ($A92,250) and the battery-powered pick-up is available with three battery pack options, giving the Ford F-150 Lightning, GMC Hummer EV and Tesla Cybertruck plenty of competition.

Furthermore, Rivian’s IPO indicates the Amazon-backed company plans to adopt the same fixed-price, customer-direct online sales model in Australia as it already employs in the US and Canada.

“We have analysed the principal laws in the United States, EU, China, Japan, United Kingdom and Australia relating to our [direct] distribution model and believe we comply with such laws,” Rivian said in the IPO.

Wherever they are built for Australia, the Rivian R1T and R1S will be seriously quick and capable, thanks to a quad-motor powertrain outputting up to 562kW and 1120Nm.

Rivian says that will allow the quickest 135kWh variants to hit 100km/h in about three seconds, but even the entry-level 105kWh battery pack is claimed to send the full-size dual-cab and SUV to 100km/h in about five seconds.

And while the biggest 180kWh battery will offer a driving range of up to 650km, all R1T models will offer an 800kg payload, 5000kg towing capacity and one-metre wading depth.