EV-Maker Rivian Puts Brakes on $5B Georgia Plant

The electric vehicle start-up Rivian announced that it will delay construction on its Georgia plant and instead begin production on new models at its existing plant in Illinois. The company says it will save $2.5 billion by delaying the Georgia plant, 45 miles east of Atlanta. Rivian plans to launch the R2 EV truck in the first half of 2026, so if the automaker waits for the full launch of the new vehicles, Georgia could be on hold for another two years at least.

The Georgia site was first announced with great fanfare in late 2021. The $5 billion project was hailed as one of the biggest economic development projects in Georgia history and a sign of Georgia’s growing role in the electric vehicle industry.

The project was originally set to break ground in early 2022 but has been slowed by legal challenges to the incentives offered to the California-based company and supply chain and other manufacturing woes.