Rivian and the Department of Energy have was finalized a $6.6 billion loan announced in November just days before Donald Trump’s inauguration. The company will use the loan to help build its planned factory in Georgia, east of Atlanta, with construction starting in 2026. The first R2 SUVs are scheduled to roll off the line in 2028.
The loan comes from the Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing (ATVM) program, part of DOE’s Office of Loan Programs. ATVM is best known as the program that gave Tesla a $465 million bailout in 2009.
Rivian’s loan drew criticism from Vivek Ramaswamy, who is expected to co-chair the so-called “government efficiency department” with Elon Musk after Trump takes office. Ramaswamy he said would look to get the loan back, though it’s unclear how he would go about doing so, and neither he nor Musk have explained exactly how they plan to structure and operate their new endeavor.
The loan is available in two tranches, which Rivian says it will use to finance the two stages of development it plans in Georgia. Rivian can borrow up to $3.35 billion in the first tranche and up to $2.62 billion in the second tranche. (The remaining $600 million goes toward eliminating the interest on the loan.)
Rivian has 52 months to start drawing money from agreement. He has also made certain promises to the DOE that he must fulfill in order to access the funds. The company must sell at least a certain number of the upcoming R2 SUVs that will be built at its plant in Normal, Illinois. (The exact number is listed on the loan agreement.) It also has to hit certain product design milestones on the R2 and R3 hatchbacks.
Rivian announced plans for the Georgia plant in December 2021, just weeks after the company’s big IPO. It originally said it would begin production at the facility under construction in 2024. But last year, in an effort to cut costs, Rivian halted construction of the plant and decided to build R2 in Illinois. Armed with the DOE loan, Rivian now believes it can roll new vehicles off the line at the factory four years later than originally planned.
