Electric vehicle maker Rivian appears set to begin construction of a planned $5 billion plant near Atlanta, a project that's been hit by months of delays and as Hyundai reconsiders its own EV plant elsewhere in Georgia following raids on its employees.
Rivian said it's ready to start on Tuesday at a groundbreaking ceremony at the site of its proposed 2 million-square-foot plant in Social Circle, Georgia, about 45 miles east of Atlanta. Rivian announced its plans for the factory in 2021, but legal challenges from local residents and production difficulties at the company’s existing plant in Normal, Illinois, postponed the start of construction. The actual start of construction is expected to begin in 2026.
Rivian’s project comes as automakers expect a steep decline in EV sales with President Donald Trump set to cancel a tax credit for EV purchases later this month. Consumers ramped up purchases of EVs this summer ahead of the expected expiration of the tax credits, according to industry data tracker Cox Automotive.
Automakers are also grappling with lower-than-expected demand for EVs, with consumers balking at the steep price tag of some EV models.
South Korea’s Hyundai is also grappling with the impact on its U.S. operations from a Sept. 4 federal immigration raid where 475 of its employees at a plant near Savannah were arrested on suspicion of being in the country illegally. Hundreds of Hyundai employees were sent back to South Korea after the raid. The arrests were part of a larger push by Trump aide Stephen Miller, who has called for 3,000 arrests per day to rid the country of immigrants.
South Korea is investigating the raid to see if any human rights violations were committed, CNBC reported, citing South Korean media reports.
Lee Jae Myung, the president of South Korea, described the raid as “bewildering” and said it will discourage future investment by Korean companies in the United States.
Rivian estimates it will begin production at the Georgia facility in 2028 and employ 7,500 full-time workers by 2030. It has already begun initial construction activities, such as expanding detention ponds, improving stormwater management and preparing for utilities and heavy equipment installation.
“Our Georgia facility will support our global expansion and provide the scale necessary to get millions of future drivers” in our vehicles, Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe said in a statement from the EV maker.
For the record
Clayco is the general contractor.