July 2 (Reuters) - Rivian Automotive raised its annual delivery forecast on Thursday, betting on strong demand for its electric delivery vans and R1 SUVs and pickup trucks, as well as a boost from its newly launched, more affordable model — the R2.
The Irvine, California-based automaker now expects 2026 deliveries between 65,000 and 70,000 vehicles, up from its earlier forecast of 62,000 to 67,000, despite lingering affordability concerns following last year's expiration of federal EV tax credits.
Fifteen analysts polled by Visible Alpha estimate the company will deliver 63,138 vehicles this year.
Priced from $57,990 for the launch variant, the smaller R2 SUVs are central to the company's growth plans and are expected to compete with Tesla's best-selling Model Y.
Rivian, which began production of the R2 in April and started customer deliveries in June, saw second-quarter deliveries rise over 14% to 12,194 vehicles, beating estimates for 10,518 deliveries, according to Visible Alpha data.
The company attributed the growth to robust demand for its delivery vans and R1 models, coupled with the start of R2 deliveries.
The EV maker will need to deliver about 45,000 more vehicles in the second half of 2026 to hit the midpoint of its revised full-year target.
In March, Uber said it would invest up to $1.25 billion in Rivian as part of a deal to deploy 10,000 fully autonomous R2 SUVs as robotaxis from 2028.
A $53,990 premium version of the R2 is expected to be available later this year, followed by a rear-wheel-drive Standard model priced at $48,490 early next year. A much-anticipated $45,000 variant is slated for release by late 2027.
Rivian is also developing undisclosed variants of the R2, including a possible performance version, and an R3 crossover that could help boost volumes in lower-priced segments.
(Reporting by Anhata Rooprai in Bengaluru; Editing by Jonathan Ananda)
