American EV maker Rivian is expanding its footprint worldwide. The startup has opened a facility for research and development in Belgrade, Serbia, according to a statement put out by the office of the president of the European country.
The company will employ 200 engineers before the year runs out. Rivian plans to add 1,000 positions next year. It is expanding despite posting a $1.7 billion loss for the third quarter of 2022.
However, Rivian maintains it will meet its 25,000 vehicle target for 2022.
According to VP for talent acquisition Cindy Nicola, there are 14 Rivian employees in Serbia, but the number will jump to 25 by the end of the month, reported See News.
Serbian president Aleksandar Vucic, attending the opening ceremony, said, “We must continue to work on increasing our capacity, and see how we can expand the capacity of the faculty of technical sciences in Novi Sad, as well as all the other faculties within the Belgrade University.”
Back in its home country, Rivian has signed a renewable energy contract with Apex Clean Energy to power its Normal plant.
It also recently started deliveries in Canada, where it opened a service center. As of their most recent update the automaker has more than 114,000 pre-orders in the two countries.
