Rivian Automotive Inc.'s (RIVN) stock price soared on Thursday after the EV carmaker announced that it will supply electric vehicles to the AT&T fleet. This comes as the first major announcement after the EV carmaker ended its deal with Amazon(AMZN).
You may have already seen Rivian Automotive delivering Amazon packages, but now their commercial vans will cater to AT&T’s fleet. The telecom giant(AT&T) announced that it will be purchasing electric vehicles from Rivian for its fleet in a pilot program launching early next year.
AT&T said that it would ”begin evaluating the various ways these vehicles help improve safety, reduce costs and cut its carbon footprint."
Rivian stock price rose more than 10%, putting it on track for its biggest close since October when it closed at $23.69. AT&T and Rivian announced their deal on Thursday with AT&T agreeing to buy Rivian’s electric vans and other EVs for its fleet, expecting the first vehicles to arrive early next year.
On the other hand, AT&T also became the exclusive provider of connectivity for all Rivian electric vehicles in the United States & Canada, including enabling Rivian’s over-the-air software updates to “consistently improve its vehicles with new features that elevate the driving experience for its customers.”
The pilot program "is another important step in our ongoing efforts toward sustainability, reducing our carbon footprint and embracing a cleaner future for our operations." said Hardmon Williams, senior vice president of Connected Solutions at AT&T. AT&T is targeting carbon neutrality by 2035.
Rivian announced in November that it has suspended its exclusivity deal to provide electric vehicles to Amazon. Besides Rivian, other EV and automobile stocks outperformed the broader market, including a 5% increase for Tesla(TSLA) and General Motors Co.(GM) shares.
The news helped Rivian’s stock into positive territory for the year, finishing Thursday’s trading session up 14% at $22.43.
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