By Michael Elkins
The Wall Street Journal reports Monday morning that Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Rivian Automotive Inc (NASDAQ:RIVN) are in talks to scrap the exclusivity part of their electric-van deal, allowing the automaker to sell to others.
Under the terms of a 2019 agreement, Rivian is required to sell all of the vans it makes to Amazon. According to people familiar with the matter, in recent months, Amazon notified Rivian that it wanted to buy about 10,000 vans this year, which is at the low end of a range previously provided. In response, Rivian sought to remove the exclusivity terms.
An Amazon spokeswoman said the company remains committed to buying 100,000 vans from Rivian by 2030, which were the terms outlined in the original agreement. “Rivian remains an important partner for Amazon, and we’re excited about the future,” she said.
A Rivian spokeswoman said: “Our relationship with Amazon has always been a positive one. We continue to work closely together and are navigating a changing economic climate, similar to many companies.”
Amazon and Rivian worked together closely on the development of the electric van. A change in the Amazon relationship would mark the latest challenge for Rivian, which is under pressure to cut costs and boost factory output.
Shares of AMZN and RIVN are down 1.85% and 3.38%, respectively, in premarket trading on Monday.