Automaker Rivian pauses construction of its $5 billion electric truck plant in Georgia

ATLANTA (AP) — The CEO of Rivian Automotive announced Thursday that the electric truck maker is pausing construction of its $5 billion manufacturing plant in Georgia to speed production and save money. California-based Rivian had planned to start building its new R2 midsize SUVs at the Georgia site east of Atlanta. State and local governments offered an incentive package as large as $1.5 billion, one of the largest ever offered for an American auto plant. But as the company unveiled the new SUV and made the unexpected announcement of additional R3 and R3X crossover models at an event Thursday, CEO RJ Scaringe said production of the R2 will instead begin at Rivian’s existing plant in Normal, lllinois. He said the move would allow Rivian to get the R2 to market more quickly, sometime in 2026. It would also save $2.25 billion in capital spending for now, Rivian said in a news release. The company has been burning through accumulated cash quickly, even as it hasn’t met production targets at its Illinois plant. “Our Georgia site remains really important to us,” Scaringe said. “It’s core to the scaling across all these vehicles, between R2, R3 and R3X. And we’re so appreciative...