(Reuters) -Rivian lowered its deliveries forecast for 2025 on Tuesday as U.S. tariffs on imported vehicles and auto parts threaten to unsettle the economy and hurt demand for its electric SUVs and pickup trucks.
“About the impact of tariffs, it’s a couple of thousand dollars of cost that we’re going to see on a per vehicle basis,” CEO RJ Scaringe told Reuters.
The company said it now expects to hand over between 40,000 and 46,000 units this year, down from its earlier projection of between 46,000 and 51,000 vehicles.
While Rivian makes its vehicles in the U.S. and uses parts mostly made in North America, it still depends on Asian countries for critical components such as lithium-ion batteries, which face steep duties inflating an EV maker’s expenses.
Several automakers, including Tesla, have also said they were reassessing their full-year targets in the face of tariff uncertainty.
“The current global economic landscape presents significant uncertainty, particularly regarding evolving trade regulation, policies, tariffs and the overall impact these items may have on consumer sentiment and demand,” Rivian said in a letter to shareholders.
“These factors are expected to impact our global supply chain, material costs and access, capital expenditures, and market dynamics,” it said, adding that the company was trying to mitigate the risks with “strategic sourcing and proactive engagement with policymakers.”
The company also increased its forecast for capital expenditures for the year to between $1.8 billion and $1.9 billion from between $1.6 billion and $1.7 billion predicted earlier.
The Trump administration last month introduced 25% tariffs on imported vehicles and auto parts, but recent changes are set to exempt vehicles with at least 85% domestic content from the full tariff, while also offering a 15% credit on imported parts.
Rivian on Monday said it would invest $120 million to bring its key parts suppliers near its plant in Illinois, as the electric vehicle-maker prepares to produce its smaller, more affordable R2 SUVs next year.
Rivian, facing soft demand due to factors like Los Angeles fires and a consumer shift toward cheaper hybrid vehicles in an uncertain economy, saw a 36% drop in deliveries to 8,640 in the first quarter, but still exceeded analysts’ expectations.
The company also plans to halt production for several weeks in the second half of this year to prepare for the R2 vehicle launch in early 2026 that may further constrain output and revenue.
Revenue for the first quarter stood at $1.24 billion, surpassing analysts’ average estimate of $1.01 billion, according to LSEG data.
(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru and Abhirup Roy in San Francisco; Editing by Anil D’Silva)
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