ATLANTA — Electric vehicle startup Rivian announced Tuesday it has chosen the construction firm to build its planned $5 billion factory an hour east of Atlanta.
Chicago-based Clayco will construct the 16 million-square-foot factory on an 1,800-acre megasite in southern Morgan and Walton counties, according to a news release. The plant, which ranks among Georgia’s largest economic development projects, is expected to employ 7,500 workers when EVs begin rolling off production lines in 2026.
California-based Rivian operates one plant in Illinois, a former Mitsubishi factory that was retrofitted to assemble the startup’s electric vans, the R1T truck and R1S SUV. Rivian picked Georgia for its second factory, which will be the company’s first custom-built plant. Rivian expects to build its next line of vehicles, a crossover known as the R2, at the forthcoming Georgia factory.
Vertical construction on the future factory is expected to begin early next year, but a specific construction timeline was not released. A Rivian spokesperson declined to comment.
The project, which has sustained multiple delays, has been subject to lengthy legal battles over zoning, environmental concerns and the $1.5 billion incentive package used by state and local officials to woo the company to the Peach State. In November, Rivian closed on a complicated land agreement with the state and a local development authority to gain access to the project site, which has been undergoing grading work since last year.
Founded in 1984, Clayco has taken on multiple EV-related projects in recent years, including startup VinFast’s manufacturing plant in North Carolina and Entek’s lithium battery manufacturing facility in Indiana. The company credited the Inflation Reduction Act — President Joe Biden’s landmark climate and health care law that passed last year — with enabling the growing number of domestic EV projects.
“With Clayco’s dedication to developing innovative ideas and solutions, we are confident they are the right partner to ensure the Rivian plant is a shining example of sustainable manufacturing,” Tony Sanger, Vice President of Facilities at Rivian, said in a news release. Rivian selected Jacobs as its engineer of record and Skidmore, Owings & Merrill as its design architect.
High interest rates, supply chain issues and other challenges have hampered Rivian the past two years, but the company has said it is working through those issues, aiming to reach profitability by the end of next year. Cox Enterprises, which owns The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, owns about a 4% stake in Rivian.