Rivian starts selling electric vans to customers other than Amazon

Rivian has opened its order books for its electric delivery van (EDV) in the US, which it previously exclusively produced for the e-commerce giant Amazon. Prices start at just under 80,000 dollars.

Rivian and Amazon ended their exclusivity clause at the end of 2023. Since then, the US manufacturer has been testing its EDV “with several large fleets in the US, and preparing its fleet management process for the mass market.”

“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,” explains Tom Solomon, Senior Director of Business Development at Rivian. “As a result, we’re excited to now be able to open sales to fleets of all sizes in the US, whether they want one van or thousands. 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.”

The exclusivity clause between Amazon and Rivian dates back to 2019, according to which Rivian will deliver 100,000 units of its electric delivery van to Amazon. The first units were handed over in the US in 2022. All of them are to hit the road by the end of the decade. By January 2025, the online retailer already had 20,000 Rivian EDVs in its US delivery fleet.

Amazon is still one of Rivian’s major investors, holding a 16 per cent stake in the latter.

The EDV is available in two sizes, called the EDV 500 and EDV 700. According to the company website, it comes with a Type 2 and a CCS1 connector in the US – and not a NACS connector. The company’s R1 and R2 will receive the latter, while current models can plug in at Tesla’s Supercharger station with the help of an adapter.

But back to the delivery van: Rivian says that it can charge with up to 100 kW DC. The smaller variant has an estimated range of 161 miles (about 260 km), has a payload of 2,663 lb (about 1.2 tonnes), and 487 cu. ft (about 14 m3) of cargo space. It is 6.3 metres long, 2.9 metres wide and has a wheelbase of four metres.

The larger variant has a range of 160 miles, a payload of 2,258 lb (about 1,02 tonnes) and 652 cubic feet (about 18.5 m3) of cargo space. It measures 7.3 metres in length and just under three metres in height. It has a wheelbase of 4.7 metres. Both vehicles have a front-wheel drive that produces up to 235 kW. The battery has an energy content of 100 kWh. Prices in the US start at $79,900 for the EDV 500 and $83,900 for the EDV 700.

businesswire.com, rivian.com (specs)