Rivian Automotive and Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) are considering ending the exclusivity part of their electric van deal from 2019, the Wall Street Journal has reported.
According to the Journal, the move comes after Amazon’s 2023 order came in at the low end of a previously provided range, citing people familiar with the matter.
Amazon notified Rivian that it was looking to buy 10,000 vans in 2023, which is on the low end of the range that it had provided to Rivian earlier.
The agreement stipulates that Rivian sell all of its electric vans to Amazon.
In response, Rivian is looking to remove the exclusivity terms, which would allow it to sell its delivery vans to other customers.
Amazon owns a 17% stake in Rivian, making the technology giant Rivian’s largest shareholder.
It has been a challenging couple of months for Rivian: the electric vehicle manufacturer missed 4Q revenue expectations by a wide margin.
Perhaps more worrying, the carmarker said it is anticipating production of 50,000 vehicles for 2023, way below the 63,000 figure that analysts had expected.
Later, Rivian unveiled plans to issue US$1.3 billion in green bonds as the California-based group faces a cash crunch amid lowered production guidance for the year ahead.
The company said the funds would help facilitate the launch of its smaller R2 vehicle family.
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