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2022 Rivian R1T
Courtesy of Rivian
Stock in electric truck startup
Rivian Automotive
was falling Tuesday because of two issues that impact the same key success factor for the company: vehicle production.
Rivian (ticker: RIVN) shares opened down about 3%, trading below $79. Shares were down about 1.5% in early trading at $80.26. The
S&P 500
and
Dow Jones Industrial Average
were down about 0.3% and 0.5%, respectively.
For starters, investors are unnerved by the departure of the company’s chief operating officer, Rodney Copes. His profile on the professional networking site LinkedIn said he is retired from Rivian.
That news is hitting shares because it was a surprise. The company didn’t put out a news release or filing announcing the departure.
What is more, Rivian is on the cusp of ramping up production of its first product, the R1T pickup truck, at its first factory in Illinois. Increasing production is a task overseen by any chief operating officer. It’s not known if anyone has taken his place.
Neither Copes nor the company responded to a request for comment on his departure.
Jimmy Knauf is Rivian’s vice president in charge of facilities. He started in November 2021. Charly Mwangi is the vice president in charge of manufacturing engineering. He joined Rivian in May 2020.
In addition to the operating chief departure, The Wall Street Journal reported that Rivian said it produced roughly 1,000 vehicles in 2021. In mid-December, CEO R.J. Scaringe said the company’s goal was to make about 1,200 units in 2021. Rivian fell just short.
The pace of production is an important factor for investors to watch this year at Rivian. Wall Street expects the company to deliver about 40,000 vehicles. That implies ramping production from a handful of units a week to, perhaps, 1,500 a…
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