Rivian posts first gross profit in Q4

However, at USD 743 million, this is also better than the USD 1.52 billion reported in Q4 2023. The positive highlight from the Rivian figures for the fourth quarter, however, is undoubtedly the gross profit of 170 million US dollars, 110 million of which came from the car business. In the car business itself, the higher average selling prices of the R1 models were responsible for this, which Rivian attributes to the better availability of the tri-motor range – Rivian can charge more for the variant with three electric motors. However, the sale of carbon credits and growth in software and service sales also contributed to the positive Q4 result.

For the full year 2024, Rivian recorded a net loss of around 4.7 billion dollars (2023: 5.4 billion dollars). As reported, Rivian produced a total of 49,476 vehicles in 2024 and delivered 51,579. The company anticipates lower delivery figures for 2025 – specifically 46,000 to 51,000 vehicles.

However, even with the lower deliveries – a big boost is only expected with the more affordable R2 model – the loss is expected to continue to fall. “The significant progress made against our core value drivers in 2024 will be foundational to Rivian’s long term success. Throughout the year, the team was laser focused on driving improvement in cost and operational efficiencies, technology leadership, and customer experience,” Rivian writes in the investor letter on the annual figures.

The revised version of the R1 models was introduced in 2024. Although this can only be distinguished from the original R1 from the outside in very few respects (for example, the indicators are no longer integrated into the main headlights, but placed in a separate light unit underneath), the ‘second generation’ (in Rivian’s own words) has implemented “significant engineering design optimizations, supply chain driven cost reductions, and improvement in commodity costs.” “As we outlined in early 2024, the key drivers to achieving positive gross profit included improvements in variable costs, revenue per unit delivered, and fixed costs,” wrote the company.

Rivian also quotes an impressive figure for the EDVs, the Electric Delivery Vehicles: the electric transporters, which were once developed for Amazon but are now freely sold, were involved in the delivery of one billion shipments in the Amazon fleet.

The software joint venture with VW is of course also mentioned in the investor letter, but had hardly any impact on the 2024 business results. Revenue from the software business comes primarily from the ‘Connect+’ offer, which enables streaming and a WiFi hotspot in the vehicles, among other things. Rivian customers receive a free trial version for 60 days. “We continue to see a positive customer reaction to this offering, with the majority of our customers choosing to subscribe to Connect+ after the end of their 60-day free trial period,” the company reports.

rivian.com (PDF)