The Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office announced on November 25, 2024, a conditional commitment to Rivian New Horizon, LLC — a subsidiary of Rivian Automotive, Inc. — for a direct loan of up to $6.57 billion. The loan would finance development and construction of Project Horizon, a nine-million-square-foot electric vehicle manufacturing facility in Stanton Springs North, near Social Circle, Georgia. The facility would produce up to 400,000 mass-market electric SUVs and crossover vehicles annually, with Rivian’s all-electric midsize platform — including the R2 and R3 models — as the first variants in production. The commitment is offered under LPO’s Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing loan program.
What it means
If finalized, the loan would add a second Rivian manufacturing site to the company’s current single plant in Normal, Illinois, where Rivian produces the R1S, R1T, and commercial vans. The Georgia facility would bring up to 2,000 full-time jobs during construction and 7,500 operations jobs by 2030. LPO described the commitment as the first ATVM loan under the Biden-Harris Administration directed at producing advanced technology vehicles themselves, rather than vehicle components. At full capacity, DOE said EVs manufactured at the facility are expected to yield annual petroleum fuel consumption savings of approximately 146 million gallons.
Rivian said it intends to hire at least 25 percent of its Stanton Springs workforce from local communities. The company is working with Georgia’s QuickStart technical training incentive program and currently has approximately 20 Georgia-local apprentices completing job training at its Illinois plant; those apprentices are expected to return to Georgia to work at the facility upon completing the program. The announcement is tied to the Justice40 Initiative, which directs 40 percent of overall benefits from certain federal investments to disadvantaged communities. DOE and Rivian must still satisfy technical, legal, environmental, and financial conditions before financing documents are executed and the loan is funded.
Key facts
- Conditional commitment date: November 25, 2024
- Total loan amount: up to $6.57 billion — $5.975 billion principal, $592 million capitalized interest
- Loan program: Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing (ATVM) Loan Program, DOE Loan Programs Office
- Borrower: Rivian New Horizon, LLC, a subsidiary of Rivian Automotive, Inc.
- Project location: Stanton Springs North, near Social Circle, Georgia
- Facility size: 9 million square feet
- Annual production capacity: up to 400,000 electric SUVs and crossover vehicles (according to the company)
- Construction jobs: up to 2,000 full-time (according to the company)
- Operations jobs target: 7,500 by 2030 (according to the company)
- Expected annual fuel savings at full capacity: approximately 146 million gallons of petroleum
- Local hiring commitment: at least 25 percent of Stanton Springs employees from local communities (according to the company)
- Georgia apprentices currently in training at Rivian’s Normal, Illinois plant: approximately 20
Source: Energy Department Loan Programs Office announcement (energy.gov)