In 2015, the Michigan agency in charge of delivering select subsidies to corporations announced it would give $1.77 million to a company called Rivian Automotive for a proposed plant in Dearborn that it promised would create 174 jobs.
Rivian is headquartered in Plymouth and manufactures vehicle components and battery packs in some facilities in other states. According to the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, Rivian collected $1.72 million in state taxpayer dollars.
However, Autoline Daily reported in June that Rivian is going to move most of its operations out of Michigan and to Irvine, California.
“It will keep some employees in Michigan to finish up current work but all future programs will be done in Irvine,” said John McElroy of Autoline.
Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe wanted all of the company’s tech people in one place, according to Autoline.
AutoBlog reported that Rivian has 750 employees in Michigan.
Rivian released a statement to AutoBlog, which read: “Of Rivian’s 2,300 employees, approximately 1,000 are based in California and 750 in Michigan, and we are consolidating some engineering teams to our locations in California to improve workflows and reduce environmental impact from travel. We’ve recently completed an expansion at our Michigan location and it will remain an important presence for us. We are also committed to creating a vibrant and inviting manufacturing presence in Normal, Illinois, where all Rivian vehicles will be produced. As we grow, we’ll keep evaluating and evolving our footprint and geography.”
Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.