Dive Brief:
- Electric vehicle maker Rivian Automotive has opened orders for its commercial vans to small and large fleets in the U.S., the company announced in a press release Feb. 10.
- The two electric vans dubbed the "Delivery 500” and “Delivery 700” have a gross vehicle weight rating of 9,500 lbs and are equipped with a FWD electric powertrain that delivers an estimated driving range of around 160 miles.
- By working closely with Amazon since 2019 on the development of custom-built delivery vans, Rivian has gained knowledge about the features and functions and durability requirements of commercial electric fleet vehicles. The pilot with Amazon has now paved the way to open sales further, according to the release.
Dive Insight:
Rivian announced its plans to sell commercial electric vehicles to fleet customers other than Amazon in November 2023. A month later, the company signed an agreement with AT&T for the purchase of electric vans as part of a pilot program. AT&T is also the exclusive provider of the connectivity features of Rivian vehicles.
However, Amazon remains Rivian's largest commercial customer to date. In 2019, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos placed a $7 billion order with Rivian to supply it with up to 100,000 electric delivery vans by 2030. Amazon currently has more than 20,000 Rivian delivery vehicles in its fleet, which collectively delivered over a billion packages for the company in 2024 alone, according to the release.
Amazon has also shipped Rivian’s custom vans to Europe. In July 2023, the company annnounced plans to deploy 300 vans in Germany, joining a fleet of thousands of electric vans already in operation overseas.
“Over the last year we have been focusing our efforts on testing with some larger fleets, and we’re really pleased with how those trials have gone,” said Tom Solomon, Rivian’s senior director of business development, in the release. “As a result, we’re excited to now be able to open sales to fleets of all sizes in the US, whether they want 1 van or thousands.”
Rivian’s expansion into the commercial EV segment may also pose some new competition for General Motors, Ford Motor Co. and Stellantis. The three automakers have plans to launch commercial electric vehicles and connected software for fleet customers as a way to generate new and recurring revenues streams.
In August 2024, GM announced it was moving its electric BrightDrop commercial vans under its Chevrolet brand to make it easier for commercial customers to visit a dealer for sales, service and maintenance needs.
But with Rivian’s ongoing partnership with Amazon, the EV maker may hold a competitive advantage in the burgeoning commercial EV market in the short-term, as the Big Three continue to build out their respective commercial businesses.
Rivian's Delivery 500 van starts at $79,900, while the larger 700 model starts at $83,900. Both are based on Rivian’s EV platform used by Amazon. The 700 model offers 652 cubic feet of cargo space compared to 487 cubic feet for the smaller version.
The commercial EVs also feature Rivian’s in-house software to control nearly every interaction, including acceleration, unlocking the vehicle, opening the doors and charging management. According to Rivian, these features help to improve the ownership experience, minimize costs, increase safety and boost productivity of fleet vehicles.
“Our vehicles are designed to not only be among the safest on the road, but will also help fleet owners to reduce the cost of fleet ownership and their carbon footprint,” said Solomon.
