Rivian Ramping Up Production After Near-Weeklong Pause For Fixes, Improvements: Report

Rivian Automotive Inc RIVN is ramping up output at its Normal, Illinois plant after a near-weeklong production pause earlier this month, Bloomberg News reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

What Happened: The electric truck maker is aiming to make 200 ready-to-sell units per week after lifting the pause that was aimed at improving fixes and process improvements.

Rivian was making about 50 units a week through the end of December, the report noted, adding that the rate dropped significantly lower last month amid COVID-19 outbreaks at the plant and supply-chain bottlenecks.

The company, backed by Amazon.com Inc AMZN and Ford Motor Co F, has plans to increase its annual capacity to 200,000 vehicles at Normal. Its second plant will be built in Georgia and have a capacity of 400,000 vehicles a year.

Why It Matters: The Irvine, California-based maker of R1T electric trucks and R1S electric SUVs last month warned it would fall short of the 2021 production target as it faced issues bringing up a new supply chain.

See Also: Rivian Misses 2021 Production Target Of 1,200 Electric Vehicles: What You Need To Know

Rivianended up making just 1,015 electric vehicles and delivered 920 of those last year.

The company is struggling to ramp up production of its first pickup trucks, putting shares under pressure since the start of this year after a blockbuster run late last year.

Price Action: Rivian shares closed 1.11% higher at $60.3 a share on Wednesday. The stock is down 41% year-to-date.

Photo: Courtesy of Rivian