Rivian Automotive Inc. CEO RJ Scaringe stated the automaker is just not becoming a member of the electrical automobile worth battle began by Tesla Inc. this 12 months due to Rivian’s sturdy order backlog and the general worth of its autos at present worth ranges.

“We really feel assured within the worth proposition of what we’re delivering at our pricing ranges right now,” Scaringe stated on the corporate’s fourth-quarter earnings name Tuesday.

Whereas the present local weather of upper rates of interest usually reduces shopper demand, Rivian has an order backlog that can take till 2024 to satisfy.

“The demand backlog we’ve got may be very sturdy,” Scaringe stated. “It provides us a transparent line of sight effectively into 2024.”

He additionally famous that Tesla’s worth cuts got here after will increase final 12 months. The cuts have been additionally focused in lower-priced segments the place Rivian does not but compete.

Rivian now not gives a quantity for its order backlog, however in November it reported 114,000 preorders within the U.S. and Canada. That quantity was for its shopper autos, the R1T pickup and R1S crossover. Rivian additionally has a long-term order for 100,000 EDV supply vans.

In its fourth-quarter earnings report, the EV maker stated it continued to burn by means of money however anticipated price reductions and rising manufacturing ranges will enhance automobile gross margins over time.

The automaker’s inventory worth fell about 10 p.c in after-hours buying and selling following the earnings report.

Rivian posted a $1.7 billion web loss within the fourth quarter and forecast full-year 2023 manufacturing of simply 50,000 autos. That will be double its 2022 output however beneath analyst expectations.

The automaker stated that provide chain points will restrict manufacturing from its Regular, Sick., manufacturing facility and that it had scheduled downtime to implement new applied sciences, together with its in-house Enduro motor.

“Our Enduro motor is predicted to offer price and vary efficiencies whereas increasing our addressable market,” Rivian stated in its fourth-quarter shareholder letter.

The bottom trim of the R1T will use the Enduro to convey down prices.

The R1T begins at $74,800, with transport, utilizing the Enduro dual-motor configuration. The bottom model is accessible for preorder however is just not in manufacturing but. The pickup that is at the moment out there begins at $88,800, with transport, utilizing a quad-motor configuration from an out of doors provider and a bigger battery pack.

The Enduro additionally shall be used within the EDV vans Rivian will produce for Amazon, together with a brand new lithium iron phosphate battery pack to save lots of prices.

Rivian’s manufacturing goal of fifty,000 autos contains the R1T, R1S and EDV. It doesn’t escape manufacturing — or its forecast — by nameplate. The 2023 forecast is beneath analyst expectations of 67,170, in line with Seen Alpha information cited by Reuters.

The Illinois plant has capability of 150,000 per 12 months. Scaringe has expressed frustration at having to run the plant at a fraction of its capability due to provide chain points and teething pains in the course of the manufacturing ramp-up.

Final 12 months, Rivian produced 24,337 autos and delivered 20,332, together with fourth-quarter manufacturing of 10,020 and deliveries of 8,054.

Rivian initially had forecast manufacturing of fifty,000 autos in 2022 earlier than downgrading that to 25,000 due to provide chain issues.

Rivian, with headquarters in Irvine, Calif., reported fourth-quarter income at $663 million, in contrast with analysts’ estimate of $742 million, in line with Refinitiv information cited by Reuters. The fourth-quarter web lack of $1.7 billion in contrast with a $2.5 billion loss a 12 months earlier.

Rivian additionally reported money and money equivalents of $11.6 billion, down from $13.3 billion on the finish of the previous quarter.

Rivian introduced a recall Tuesday of greater than 12,700 autos associated to a problem with a sensor within the entrance passenger seat belt system. The corporate estimates that fewer than 100 autos would require the half to get replaced.

Analysts say the EV maker is now going through headwinds from a difficult financial local weather because the Federal Reserve raises rates of interest, growing the chance of a U.S. recession.

Rivian, which was first to launch an electrical pickup, in late 2021, has recent competitors from the Ford F-150 Lightning and the approaching Chevrolet Silverado EV and Tesla Cybertruck.

Together with Tesla, fellow EV startup Lucid Group has resorted to cost cuts to incentivize demand. These strikes recommend a tougher gross sales local weather for luxurious EVs.

Reuters contributed to this report.