Rivian, an American electric vehicle manufacturer, is leasing a 48,425-square-foot multiuse space at IGP/95 Logistics Park in St. Johns County.
It will receive and service vehicles. It is not a sales site, customers must buy the cars online.
Rivian said June 11 customers also can do test drives at the facility.
Rivian is the one of two tenants at the logistics park, which was completed in May. Avanti Windows & Doors has moved in.
The park sits on a 43-acre site off Interstate 95, about 2.3 miles southwest of Buc-ee’s, east of International Golf Parkway and across from Tocoi Creek High School. It totals 509,909 square feet.
R.J. Scaringe founded Rivian, headquartered in Irvine, California, in 2009.
Similar to Tesla, the EV company sells vehicles directly to consumers online and uses its showrooms for demonstrations, service and storage instead of operating traditional dealerships.
In Florida, it has service and demonstration centers in Tampa, Orlando and Miami where customers can schedule test drives.
Foundry Commercial and Barings are development partners in the logistics center project.
Foundry is an Orlando-based real estate company. Barings is an international real estate investment manager.
“Rivian is a terrific complement to the IGP/95 Logistics Park,” said Foundry partner Mark Scott.
“From their first visit, we felt a synergy with the Rivian team, which facilitated a smooth negotiation on the lease. It was clear that Rivian desired a St. Johns County location, and we were happy to provide that for them.”
Rivian signed in April. Scott said Foundry does not disclose lease terms.
According to Rivian.com, “We design for complete life cycles across everything we do. Our battery packs are designed to be easily removed from our vehicles and either recycled or used in ‘second life’ applications such as stationary storage. The interiors of our vehicles are made from 100% animal-free materials. Dunnage containers at our plant are reusable and made from ocean-bound plastics.”
Rivian vehicles include the SUV R1S, pickup truck R1T and crossover R3. The midsize SUV R2 is under development. Its fleet vehicles are used by Amazon.
Rivian’s main manufacturing plant is in Normal, Illinois. In January, the Department of Energy announced the closing of a $6.57 billion loan to allow Rivian to construct a second plant outside Social Circle, Georgia, about 40 miles east of Atlanta.
Rivian.com says it has 10 offices worldwide, including locations in Arizona, California, Illinois and Michigan. The company also operates dozens of other facilities for showrooms, service centers and manufacturing, with retail sites in Dallas; Nashville, Tennessee; and Austin, Texas.
Rivian released its first-quarter financial results May 6.
The company reported a $206 million positive gross profit in the quarter, a $1 billion investment from Volkswagen Group and 36,000 demo drives — the highest number in a quarter to date.
“This quarter we hit our second consecutive gross profit and our highest gross profit to date at $206 million. We have continued to make significant progress on R2, including vehicle validation builds underway and our Normal, Illinois, manufacturing facility expansion on track,” Scaringe said in the report.
This story has been updated with information from Rivian.