EV Maker Rivian Halts Production of Amazon Delivery Vans amid Parts Shortage

An Amazon EV van powered by Rivian is parked at the Amazon Logistics Facility in Chicago, Illinois, US, July 21, 2022. REUTERS/Jim Vondruska/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
An Amazon EV van powered by Rivian is parked at the Amazon Logistics Facility in Chicago, Illinois, US, July 21, 2022. REUTERS/Jim Vondruska/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
TT

EV Maker Rivian Halts Production of Amazon Delivery Vans amid Parts Shortage

An Amazon EV van powered by Rivian is parked at the Amazon Logistics Facility in Chicago, Illinois, US, July 21, 2022. REUTERS/Jim Vondruska/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
An Amazon EV van powered by Rivian is parked at the Amazon Logistics Facility in Chicago, Illinois, US, July 21, 2022. REUTERS/Jim Vondruska/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights

Rivian has temporarily suspended production of its commercial delivery vans used by retail giant Amazon.com due to a shortage of parts, a spokesperson for the electric vehicle manufacturer said on Friday.

Shares of the Irvine, California-based company were down 1.7% in premarket trading.

The production halt is the latest in a series of supply chain challenges for Rivian, which, like other EV makers, has grappled with significant production issues over the past two years due to supplier shortages, according to Reuters.

Amazon, Rivian's largest investor with a 16% stake, has ordered 100,000 electric delivery vans to be deployed by 2030. Last year, sales to Amazon represented approximately 19% of Rivian's revenue.

Amazon did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

"A part shortage has temporarily impacted our Electric Delivery Van (EDV) production. We expect to recover all missed production," the spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

The company did not disclose any information about the specific part and supplier in question, and also declined to comment on when the production stoppage began and if it has resumed.

The part shortage would not affect the production of other Rivian vehicles, including its R1S SUV and R1T pickup models.

Earlier this month, Rivian had maintained its production forecast and said that deliveries would be slightly lower in the current quarter after it shut down its factory in April for retooling and modifications.



Microsoft Faces UK Lawsuit over Cloud Computing Licenses

A Microsoft logo is pictured on a store in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, US, January 25, 2021. (Reuters)
A Microsoft logo is pictured on a store in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, US, January 25, 2021. (Reuters)
TT

Microsoft Faces UK Lawsuit over Cloud Computing Licenses

A Microsoft logo is pictured on a store in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, US, January 25, 2021. (Reuters)
A Microsoft logo is pictured on a store in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, US, January 25, 2021. (Reuters)

Microsoft faces legal action in Britain over a claim that thousands of businesses using cloud computing services provided by Amazon, Google and Alibaba could be paying higher license fees to use Windows Server software.

Competition lawyer Maria Luisa Stasi filed a case at the Competition Appeal Tribunal on Tuesday, claiming that British businesses and organizations could collectively be owed more than 1 billion pounds ($1.27 billion) in compensation.

"Put simply, Microsoft is punishing UK businesses and organizations for using Google, Amazon and Alibaba for cloud computing by forcing them to pay more money for Windows Server," she said.

"By doing so, Microsoft is trying to force customers into using its cloud computing service Azure and restricting competition in the sector."

Separately, Britain's competition regulator is investigating cloud computing, a market dominated by Amazon's AWS, Microsoft's Azure and, to a lesser extent, Google Cloud Platform.

Microsoft's licensing practices, for example for its Windows Server and Microsoft 365 products, are part of its inquiry.

It is due to update on its investigation imminently.

Microsoft in 2020 introduced new license fees for running its software on major cloud providers.

The claim alleges it then used the fees to induce customers to use its Azure platform.

Data from the Competition and Markets Authority published in May showed Microsoft was winning customers at a significantly higher rate than other cloud providers since it made the licensing change.

The United States Federal Trade Commission last week opened a broad antitrust investigation into Microsoft, including its cloud computing business, according to a source familiar with the matter.

The FTC is examining allegations the software giant was potentially abusing its market power in productivity software by imposing punitive licensing terms to prevent customers from moving from Azure to competitive platforms, sources said last month.