Ford’s electric future bolstered

Rivian is an American automotive company with a sharp focus on the future, especially when it comes to sustainable transportation like electric vehicles. Now the company has announced a deal with Ford that gives the blue oval $500 million worth of equity. 

This will result in Ford bringing a new battery electric vehicle to the market, using Rivian’s versatile skateboard platform. It’s almost odds-on the vehicle will be some kind of ute-based truck or SUV given the company is set to launch the Rivian R1T and R1S Suburban-fighter in 2020. Both vehicles are said to have a claimed range of around 640 kilometres. 

Rivian Founder and CEO RJ Scaringe said, “This strategic partnership marks another key milestone in our drive to accelerate the transition to sustainable mobility,” 

“Ford has a long-standing commitment to sustainability, with Bill Ford being one of the industry’s earliest advocates, and we are excited to use our technology to get more electric vehicles on the road.”

Ford’s Executive Chairman Bill Ford said, “We are excited to invest in and partner with Rivian,”

“I have gotten to know and respect RJ, and we share a common goal to create a sustainable future for our industry through innovation.”

Ford President and CEO Jim Hackett added, “As we continue in our transformation of Ford with new forms of intelligent vehicles and propulsion, this partnership with Rivian brings a fresh approach to both,”

“At the same time, we believe Rivian can benefit from Ford’s industrial expertise and resources.”

This news comes on top of an already announced $11 billion EV investment by Ford. It has named two examples on the way,  a Mustang-inspired crossover coming and a zero-emissions version of the immensely popular F-150 pickup.