Rivian reportedly planning EV battery pilot line in South Korea

California-based EV manufacturer Rivian is reportedly plotting the development of a pilot line for battery production in South Korea, following recent visits to South Korea by Rivian executives.

According to unnamed sources speaking to Korean media outlet The Elec, which monitors the bustling Korean electronics industry, Rivian executives recently made visits to South Korea in an effort to determine potential locations for the development of a battery production pilot line.

According to the sources, the battery pilot line would be used for research and development purposes as well as for conducting various tests. Rivian executives who made repeated trips included cell mixing manager Johnson Mark, senior director cell engineering Victor Prajapati, and senior engineer Park Ki-tae.

Rivian is already planning to manufacture prismatic batteries made from cobalt oxides as cathodes in the United States, but with a presence in South Korea would likely “collaborate extensively” with South Korean battery equipment manufacturers such as LG Energy, SK On, and Samsung SDI.

Rivian already announced in early 2021 that it would source batteries for its R1T electric ute (pickup) and R1S electric SUV from South Korean battery maker Samsung SDI. The announcement came after many months of testing and development to ensure “robust” cell design necessary for Rivian’s two premier electric vehicles.

Also worth noting are reports from late January, also stemming from The Elec, that a potential joint venture between Rivian and Samsung SDI fell over due to delays in production of Rivian’s R1T electric pick-up alongside unacceptable demands for a transfer of battery making technology and rights to inspect production facilities.

These rumours may be true, as Samsung SDI announced in October that it would form a joint venture with Netherlands based automotive giant Stellantis – which gives credibility to the idea that Samsung SDI was looking to participate in a joint venture with an automaker.

However, a report from Illinois public radio station WGLT published earlier this month quoted a Samsung SDI spokesperson who explained that the company had “not specifically discussed [a] battery JV with Rivian” and that “it is hard to fact-check the article” from The Elec “but some information is not true.”

It’s been a troublesome few months for Rivian after the company’s high watermark debut on the Nasdaq stock exchange in November which saw it close its opening day of trading with a valuation just shy of $US100 billion, making it the sixth most valuable carmaker.

Production delays have set in for the company, which has failed to scale up delivery of its R1T pick-up and R1S SUV, finishing 2021 having delivered only 920 models and producing only 1,015.

This failure to launch has played out simultaneously in Nasdaq trading, with investors punishing the company’s lack of deliveries and sending the company’s stock price plummeting 66% from its November high.