BERLIN — Mercedes-Benz Vans and Rivian Automotive Inc. have signed a memorandum of understanding for a three way partnership to provide electrical vans in a manufacturing unit in central or japanese Europe throughout the subsequent few years, Mercedes-Benz Vans stated on Thursday.
The businesses are planning methods to provide each of their fashions on a joint manufacturing line, Mercedes-Benz stated, including it was additionally growing a brand new all-electric van structure of its personal referred to as VAN.EA.
The 2 firms will make two giant vans — one primarily based on Mercedes-Benz’s VAN.EA platform and the opposite primarily based on the Rivian Mild Van electrical platform — on the plant, the assertion stated, with out disclosing the exact location.
Rivian shares rose 5.2 p.c to $34.99 in late morning buying and selling following the announcement. Rivian shares are down practically 68 p.c for the yr up to now.
Mercedes additionally stated it will restructure German factories that at present construct giant Sprinter vans to offset larger prices for EVs. It should make investments 400 tens of millions euros ($398 million) in its manufacturing unit in Düsseldorf as a part of the transition. Mercedes additionally stated it will add “a longtime plant from the Mercedes-Benz manufacturing community primarily based in Central/Jap Europe” as a 3rd van manufacturing web site, becoming a member of Düsseldorf and Ludwigsfelde, Germany.
The Mercedes plant in Kecskemet, Hungary, is prone to be on the shortlist for the joint manufacturing unit.
The plant, opened in 2012, makes entry Mercedes-Benz vehicles comparable to A-Class, B-Class and C-Class fashions. The producer plans to decrease the manufacturing of such autos as a part of its technique of shifting to higher-end fashions.
The VAN.EA platform shall be used for full-electric medium and huge industrial vans, Mercedes stated Thursday within the launch. By 2025, all newly launched Mercedes van fashions shall be solely electrical.
Mercedes additionally has a partnership with Renault, which builds its Citan and T-Class compact vans as variations of its Kangoo. The vans even have a full-electric choice. Mercedes’ medium van, the Vito, additionally has an electrical model.
The collaboration with Mercedes comes at an important time for Rivian. The electrical van and journey automobile firm has struggled to ramp up manufacturing at its Illinois manufacturing unit as provide chain disruptions and rising supplies costs pressured it to chop employees and delay product programmes.
Sharing the prices of a European meeting plant with Mercedes ought to assist the startup, which burned by means of $1.2 billion within the second quarter, preserve money and save for its second U.S. meeting plant deliberate for 2025.
Rivian is in a crowded subject of startups making an attempt to money in on demand for electrical industrial vans beneath stress from established automakers who’ve moved shortly to counter the risk with electrical vans of their very own.
Ford Motor Co. re-engineered its standard gasoline-fueled Transit van to run on batteries, and now claims management within the U.S. electrical industrial van market with practically 4,000 electrical Transits delivered this yr.
Stellantis earlier this yr signed an settlement with Amazon to offer electrical supply vans. And Rivian has agreed to provide 100,000 electrical supply vans to Amazon by 2030.
Mercedes-Benz Vans stated in April its order books have been full however factories have been combating provide chain difficulties.
Bloomberg and Reuters contributed to this report