(Reuters) – Shares of Rivian jumped over 13% in premarket trading Wednesday after the electric vehicle maker announced a $5.8 billion investment from German automaker Volkswagen as part of their joint venture.
The investment boost comes at a crucial time for Rivian, which aims to cut costs, achieve profitability, and launch its smaller, more affordable R2 SUV to attract budget-conscious consumers.
The joint venture, Rivian and VW Group Technology LLC will integrate advanced electrical infrastructure and Rivian’s software technology for both companies’ future electric vehicles.
“It (the investment) is a vote of confidence in the EV maker’s prospects, as support for EVs in the U.S. faces a more uncertain future, given Trump is returning to the White House,” said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown.
“Tesla’s Elon Musk has been given a seat at Trump’s top table,” Streeter added, which could potentially put EV rivals like Rivian in a less favorable position in future policy decisions.
Following Trump’s declaration of victory last week, shares of Rivian and other electric vehicle manufacturers went down, with Tesla being the only outlier.
Volkswagen plans to invest $5.8 billion by 2027, including $1 billion in convertible notes, $1.3 billion for intellectual property licenses and equity stake, and up to $3.5 billion in future equity, notes, and debt tied to specific milestones.
The joint venture helps alleviate “a significant chunk of the capital concern” and likely establish the Rivian and Volkswagen venture as the platform of choice in the Western world apart from Tesla, said Canaccord Genuity analysts in a note.
Rivian’s shares have fallen nearly 55% this year, underperforming rivals. If premarket gains hold, the company is set to add $1.45 billion to its current market value of $10.8 billion.
(Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid)
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