Rivian has officially obtained approval for the planned expansion of its production facility in Normal, Illinois, where it will make EVs based on its next-gen electric platform after the town’s council voted almost completely in favor of the project.
The expansion will boost Rivian’s production space by 1.3 million square feet. The larger addition is a 1.14 million-square-foot structure, while the smaller structure is 208,000 square feet. Rivian is also building two parking lots to add about 1,600 slots for its workers.
The new buildings will be allowed to exceed the height limits applied to the existing structure. Rivian is taking advantage of this by constructing a 64-foot conveyor belt instead of the 45 feet it was previously limited to.
The coast is not clear yet, though, as the state will still do storm water runoff and traffic surveys on the site before Rivian can break ground.
Rivian planned to manufacture the R2 at its proposed Georgia plant, but that has changed. The upcoming ‘affordable’ EV, which gathered more than 68,000 reservations in less than 24 hours, will now be produced in Illinois, at least at the initial stage.
The EV maker is hardly short of funding for the expansion. Illinois granted it $827 million in incentives after it decided to make the R2 there. Rivian also received a $5 billion investment from Volkswagen as the pair collaborates on EV and software production.
