Rivian To Start Billing For Its Charging Network

EV maker Rivian Automotive Inc RIVN will begin charging users of its fast-charging network starting in November.

What Happened: Though the company provided free charging to its earliest owners, it will begin billing at all of Rivian Adventure Network charging sites. Charging fees will be billed to the payment information saved in the account, the company said in an email to its customers.

Rivian Adventure Network is a network of fast-charging sites for Rivian owners. It is capable of adding up to 140 miles of range in 20 minutes to the Rivian R1T and the R1S. These charging locations are listed in the Rivian app, and the driver can also find them from their in-vehicle touchscreen.

"Nothing will change about the way you charge—simply pull up, plug in and charging will automatically start," Rivian added.

Why It Matters: Rivian plans to expand its fast charging network to over 3,500 fast chargers at over 600 sites across U.S. and Canada to ease charging for its customers.

In June, Rivian also signed an agreement with EV giant Tesla Inc. to provide its drivers access to Tesla superchargers across U.S. and Canada starting in 2024 and joined the number of automakers doing the same, including legacy automakers Ford Motor Co, and General Motors Co.

The access to Tesla's North American Charging Standard (NACS), while the company continues to build its own Rivian Adventure fast-charging network, will allow access to a very large car park, which in turn would help Rivian's charging network to reach profitability, company CEO RJ Scaringe said during the company’s second-quarter earnings call.

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