Mercedes-Benz and Rivian are collaborating to develop electrified commercial vans.
The vans will have different designs but will be manufactured on the same production line.
Production will begin in “a few years” at an existing Mercedes plant in Central or Eastern Europe.
Mercedes-Benz and Rivian said Thursday they are forming a joint venture to develop huge, electrified commercial trucks for both brands.
According to the firms, they plan to construct two separate EV vans – one for each manufacturer – on a single assembly line. The objective is to share investments, technology, and suppliers to minimise expenses for both organizations.
They want to create a new EV-only production facility at an existing Mercedes-Benz plant site in Central or Eastern Europe, with production beginning in “a few years,” according to a joint statement from the two firms.
Since 2010, MercedesBenz Vans has gained extensive experience in creating and launching eVans. We are now speeding our transition to a totally electric product line, said Mathias Geisen, president of Mercedes’ commercial van division. “We are collaborating on investments and technology with Rivian because we have the same strategic goal: to accelerate the electrification of the van market with sustainable and excellent goods for our customers.
Rivian is a newbie to the commercial vehicle category, whereas Mercedes-Benz has been producing commercial vehicles for many years and electric vans for almost a decade. The California-based EV firm began producing EV delivery vans for Amazon earlier this year, just a few months after launching production of its own upmarket electric pickups and SUVs in Illinois.
Although the vans Mercedes and Rivian will eventually build will be similar, they will be different designs: Mercedes’ will be based on its upcoming new EV van architecture, which is set to debut in 2025, while Rivian’s will be based on the next-generation version of the light van platform it developed for Amazon.
