Rivian hosts R2 open house in Normal, its new production home

Rivian built nearly 14,000 EVs in the first quarter and is on target to produce 57,000 vehicles in Normal this year. None of them will be built over the next three weeks, however.

The plant is shutting down for retooling Monday to streamline operations. When it reopens April 28, it will go from three shifts to two, with all assembly line workers expected to keep their jobs, albeit on different schedules.

“We are increasing the overall capacity and efficiency of our lines,” said Tim Fallon, 44, a former Nissan executive who has been vice president of manufacturing operations at the Normal plant since 2022. “Plus, we’re also making a lot of upgrades to our vehicles, many that you won’t see, but they help us with our costs.”

Fallon said the plant will come out of the shutdown operating at a higher line rate, which will enable it to still hit production targets for the year. The first major retooling since restarting the plant is not directly related to the future production of the R2, he said.

The R2 event comes as the rate of EV growth is beginning to slow, hindered by consumer concern about everything from range anxiety and charging infrastructure to sticker shock.

EV market share is expected to reach 8% of total new vehicle sales in 2024, up from 6.9% last year, according to the car shopping website Edmunds. EVs topped the 1 million sales mark in the U.S. last year for the first time.

Through February, EV sales totaled about 161,000 units, or 6.9% of the U.S. new car market, Edmunds said. That’s up 15% from the 140,000 EVs sold during the first two months last year, but far below the 64% growth rate over January – February 2022.

The slowing pace of EV adoption has caused a number of automakers — including Rivian — to adjust their course.

Last week, market leader Tesla announced an 8.5% decline in EVs delivered in the first quarter and reportedly has abandoned plans to build a lower-priced Model 2 for the masses. Meanwhile, Ford said Thursday it would delay rolling out a new electric pickup and SUV until 2026 and 2027, respectively, as it adds gas-electric hybrids to its lineup, a growing trend in the industry.

In February, California-based Rivian laid off 10% of its salaried workforce, including a small number of employees at its downstate Normal assembly plant, amid the broader slowdown in EV demand.

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