Rivian closes a $1.3 billion investment from T.Rowe Price

EV startup Rivian closes a $1.3 billion investment round which was lead by fund manager T. Rowe Price but also included BlackRock Inc this past week. This was the fourth investment for Rivian this year and is now considered as one of the better-financed players in a crowded EV manufacturing market where Tesla Inc is the most established player.

The previous investments were from Amazon and Ford among others with a total of $2.2 billion, where they shelled out major cash for the Plymouth, Michigan-based company which some see the predecessor of Tesla. According to PitchBook, Rivian is valued at an estimated $5 billion to $7 billion which is massive considering their cars are not even on the road yet. T. Rowe Price has placed other bets in the auto sector. It is a large Tesla shareholder and also has invested in GM’s majority-owned Cruise self-driving division.

Amazon, which has relationships and deals across the auto industry, led a $700 million investment round in Rivian in February 2019. The e-commerce company also ordered 100,000 electric delivery vehicles from Rivian. The first Amazon vans will be built at a former Mitsubishi plant in Normal, Illinois, starting in 2021. Ford invested $500 million in Rivian in April and plans to help it begin production in Normal in 2020.

Seems like 2020 is looking like it will be the turning point for electric vehicles but this massive $1.3 billion injection sounds like a game changer for Rivian!

RELATED: 2021 Rivian R1S Electric SUV

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