As Rivian Automotive reveals details of its new EV factory in Georgia, Rivian slashes its production targets and sees share price plummet
The tale of two US electric car makers took different paths early this week that saw one announce the building of a new production plant capable of churning out 400,000 vehicles a year, while the other admitted it was struggling to meet production targets.
Rivian Automotive said in a filing on Monday it has signed agreements with the state of Georgia that will allow it to start building a planned electric-vehicle factory.
The agreement provides for Rivian to rent land, and machinery to operate the plant, for which the company will pay about $300 million in property tax payments.
Rivian first announced its $5 billion EV factory just outside of Atlanta, Georgia in late 2021. Those lease payments to Georgia could increase if the investment Rivian committed to increases beyond $5 billion. The agreement is set to expire December 1, 2047. The company says that the new plant will employ more than 7,500 people and eventually build 400,000 vehicles a year.
Meanwhile Fisker, which builds the Ocean SUV, which has been well-received by reviewers not just in the USA but Europe too – saw shares fall by more than 24% to an all-time low on Tuesday (November 14) after the electric-vehicle startup slashed its production targets as it struggles to ramp up deliveries.
Fisker expects to produce between 13,000 and 17,000 electric vehicles in 2023, down from its prior projection of 20,000 to 23,000 vehicles, the company said after the stock market closed on Monday (November 13) in New York as it released its third quarter results.
Reuters reported Fisker’s shares fell to as low as $3.11, on track for the biggest daily percentage decline since the company went public in 2020. The stock is now down about 56% this year and is a fraction of its all-time intraday high of around $32 reached in March 2021 during a pandemic boom.
Multiple Wall Street analysts, including from Barclays, Evercore and Cowen, slashed their price target on Fisker’s shares after its revised production forecast. The median price target of the 14 analysts covering the stock is $6.50, down from $8 a month ago, and their current recommendation is “hold”, according to LSEG data.
Fisker delivered 1,200 vehicles in October, higher than the 1,097 it delivered in the whole of the third quarter, and it was on track to deliver even more cars this month, helped by improvements to its delivery process. Its third quarter revenue of $71.8 million and net loss of $91 million both missed analyst estimates, according to LSEG data.
About Rivian
Rivian, an EV startup that has never produced a ICE vehicle, produces delivery vehicles for Amazon and two consumer vehicles, the R1S SUV and the R1T pickup. The Amazon relationship goes beyond delivery vehicles in that the online retail behemoth owns a significant share of Rivian. It also has an influence on decisions in Rivian’s product, like including its Alexa voice recognition and smart speaker technology – for better or worse – that we’ll go into much more detail later.
Learn more about Rivian Automotive HERE
About Fisker
More than 10 years ago when Henrik Fisker, previously of BMW, Ford, and Aston Martin (where he was design director), last presented a car bearing his name. The Karma, a range-extender sports GT, was ahead of its time in many respects, but it was dogged by problems.
Production was suspended in 2012 due to the bankruptcy of its battery supplier and, in 2014, Fisker Automotive’s assets were purchased by a Chinese conglomerate, with Henrik retaining the Fisker trademarks and brand. He bided his time, waited for the world to catch up with his electric automotive vision, then in 2016 announced the formation of Fisker Inc. Three years later he revealed this car, the Ocean, to be the company’s first offering. The midsize crossover SUV design was an instant hit.
Learn more about Fisker Inc. HERE
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