(Bloomberg) — Rivian Automotive Inc. fell after Amazon.com Inc., one of its biggest backers and customers, agreed to buy battery-electric delivery vans from rival automaker Stellantis NV.
The first vehicles under the new order are due next year, Stellantis said Wednesday. It didn’t disclose the size of the deal, but Chief Executive Officer Carlos Tavares said the order was a “significant number.”
Read more: Amazon, Stellantis team up on software, delivery vehicles
The development is a threat to Rivian, which has been seen as a front-runner in a large pack of EV startups chasing market incumbent Tesla Inc., in part because of the backing of Amazon. The tech giant in 2019 ordered 100,000 electric delivery vans from Rivian, the first 10,000 of which are due by the end of this year.
Rivian said Wednesday that its deal with Amazon remains “intact, thriving and growing,” and called the latest development “good news” for the industry.
“Large fleets focused on electrification and carbon neutrality represent a win for the mission” of Rivian and Amazon, the EV firm said in an emailed statement. “Amazon’s scale is globally unprecedented, and we expect them to purchase vehicles from many providers.”
Amazon echoed the comments, saying in a separate statement that it had always intended to work with multiple providers of electric delivery vans. “We continue to be excited about our relationship with Rivian, and this doesn’t change anything about our investment, collaboration, or order size and timing.”
Shares of Irvine, California-based Rivian tumbled as much as 10%, the biggest intraday drop in more than two weeks. Stellantis’s U.S. shares rose by as much as 3.7%. U.S. electric vehicle companies have fallen for a second day amid signs of deepening competition in the sector.
Stock Slide
The decline adds to Rivian’s recent slide after the stock briefly topped $100 billion in market value — at the time more valuable than Ford Motor Co., also an investor, and General Motors Co. — following its November listing.
According to Rivian’s Oct. 1 regulatory filing, the e-commerce giant has exclusive rights to Rivian’s vans for four years, from the point of delivery of the first unit. Deliveries commenced in December. Amazon has right of first refusal to any vans built for an additional two years after that.
Read more: Rivian details $1 billion loss, Amazon deal in IPO filing
However, the terms of the deal outlined in the filing allow Amazon to work with other automakers on electric delivery vans.
(Updates with Amazon comment in sixth paragraph)
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