Amazon.com owns a 20% stake in electric-car maker Rivian, the startup with which it has placed an get for 100,000 battery-driven delivery vans, the e-commerce large disclosed Friday in a securities filing.
As of Sept. 30, Amazon held fairness investments “including most popular stock of Rivian Automotive, Inc. representing an approximately 20% ownership curiosity,” which will be valued on the stability sheet at $3.8 billion — up from $2.7 billion at the end of 2020, Amazon stated in the submitting.
Amazon shares pared losses of a lot more than 5% immediately after the disclosure of its investment decision in Rivian to trade down 2.8% to $3,347.27 as of at 12:41 p.m. in New York. The inventory has received just 2.8% in 2021, trailing the S&P 500 Index considerably.
Rivian is found as a genuine contender in the EV market and opportunity rival to incumbent Tesla. The startup’s elevated far more than $10.5 billion from investors to date and is looking for a valuation of $80 billion in an IPO later on this calendar year, Bloomberg documented in August.
Rivian said in a submitting past week that it could write-up a quarterly reduction of as considerably as $1.28 billion as it ramps up production on its debut EV, a battery-electrical pickup called R1T. The Irvine, California-based mostly organization had disclosed in a independent submitting previously this year that Amazon experienced invested a lot more than $1.3 billion in the automaker and held almost 150 million shares of most well-liked inventory.
Amazon’s voting electric power as a proportion was redacted. A representative for Rivian declined to remark.
Ties That Bind
Peter Krawiec, a senior vice president of globally corporate and enterprise enhancement at Amazon, is on Rivian’s board. The Seattle-centered company’s get for electric powered supply vans extends via the finish of the ten years, with the initial 10,000 units thanks ahead of the conclude of next yr. The order is a cornerstone of Amazon’s ambitious program to suppress its growing greenhouse gasoline emissions.
Confined generation of Rivian’s debut pickup began in August and shopper deliveries began last thirty day period. The startup has encountered numerous delays it has blamed on Covid-induced supply-chain challenges. Rivian has pushed again generation of its next buyer design, a sporting activities-utility car called the R1S.
It’s also prioritizing manpower and assets for production of Amazon’s van above its retail shopper-concentrated products, Bloomberg claimed previous thirty day period.
All 3 cars — the truck, van and SUV — will be designed at Rivian’s plant in Regular, Illinois. The firm is in talks to invest $5 billion for a second manufacturing unit in Fort Well worth, Texas, Bloomberg described in August. It’s also examining selections for a plant in Europe that could also create Amazon vans, Bloomberg claimed in January.
Other buyers in the EV maker consist of Ford, which has invested additional than $820 million in Rivian and retains a stake greater than 5%. Ford not long ago vacated its Rivian board seat.
For Amazon, the bet on Rivian represents a person of its most important investments, in greenback phrases, in a further firm. The e-retailer’s corporate development group has set income into startups doing work on voice technology associated to the Alexa digital assistant. Other investments attribute businesses that are its suppliers or associates. The roster involves investments — or warrants to acquire inventory in — foods distributor SpartanNash and air cargo operator Air Transportation Services Team Inc.
Related online video: