Jan 2 (Reuters) – Rivian on Friday reported 2025 electric vehicle deliveries that fell slightly more than expected, underscoring the pressure on demand for higher-priced EVs as it prepares to start delivering a lower-cost model in the first half of 2026.
The tally could leave investors focused on the pace of demand as Rivian seeks to improve profitability on the sale of vehicles.
The company has been pushing through efficiency measures at its Illinois plant and is simplifying components to cut material and manufacturing costs as it tries to narrow losses without relying solely on volume growth.
Rivian delivered 42,247 vehicles in 2025, down about 18% from a year earlier. Analysts had expected 42,500 deliveries for the year, according to Visible Alpha data — the average consensus implied a roughly 17.6% decline.
Automakers have been contending with slowing EV demand as the expiry of a $7,500 tax credit in the U.S. at the end of September resulted in higher prices.
For Rivian, which sells the R1T pickup truck and R1S SUV at premium price points, the environment has amplified scrutiny of whether demand can remain resilient while the company scales production.
Investors are looking ahead to Rivian’s smaller, lower-priced R2 SUV, which is expected to compete with Tesla’s best-selling Model Y.
For the fourth quarter ended December 31, Rivian produced 10,974 vehicles at its Normal, Illinois manufacturing facility and delivered 9,745. Wall Street had expected 10,050 deliveries in the quarter.
The company said it will release fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 financial results on February 12, after markets close.
(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Shreya Biswas)
