Rivian seemingly plans to reveal R2 on Mar 7 at flagship Laguna Beach store
Rivian has filed plans for a “global product launch” on March 7th at its new flagship store in Laguna Beach, and documents reveal that the launch is of its much-anticipated smaller, more affordable R2 platform.
Rivian recently opened a new flagship store in downtown Laguna Beach, in the site of a historic theater, first opened in 1936, that had fallen into disrepair. Led by Rivian design VP Denise Cherry, the company restored the building into a retail and event space, complete with stage and theater screen.
The theater is just a few minutes away from Rivian’s headquarters in Irvine, making it geographically convenient for the company to use for events. And at the grand opening of the theater, it sure did seem to us like it would be a great space to use for, say, product reveals…
And sure enough, last night Rivian went to the Laguna Beach City Council asking for approval to use the theater, and the public beach area just across the street, for a “global product launch.” This would be scheduled for the afternoon of March 7, and Rivian was asking to place 6 vehicles on the grassy area next to Main Beach, across the street from the theater, for public display.
As part of the filing, Rivian included a diagram showing its intended use of the grassy area, with a document titled “RIVIAN R2 LAUNCH”:
However, Rivian does seem to have withdrawn the request to use the public beach area, after small but vociferous opposition from some locals. But this doesn’t mean the event is canceled entirely, and moreso, the filing reveals that Rivian seems ready to launch the R2 about a month and a half from now.
Given that Rivian owns the event space inside the theater, it wouldn’t need to get a special exception to use public land, so it could still be planning to use the ample space inside the venue for a launch instead.
It’s no secret that Rivian has been working on a smaller and more affordable version of its R1T and R1S vehicles. These vehicles have received universal praise, but their starting price of around $80k puts them out of reach of many.
So there’s a lot of room for Rivian to take its branding and momentum from R1 and apply it to a vehicle that can reach more consumers – think of this as Rivian’s “Model Y” (the world’s best-selling car last year) to the R1’s “Model X.”
So far, we haven’t seen much about the R2, but we did get a glimpse of it under a cover where it does look smaller than the R1, in comparison to the company’s (tall) CEO RJ Scaringe standing next to it, but maintaining a similar boxy shape. We also saw some background marketing material which suggested the R2 will keep the R1’s iconic headlight design, and we’ve previously seen a glimpse of the fender in clay model form .
But we’re excited to learn more about it, hopefully still on March 7th (and we hope they keep that “ice cream cart” as part of the event…).
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The US Department of Energy (DOE) today announced $1.2 billion in financing to replace Puerto Rico’s fossil fuel plants with solar and battery storage through 2032.
The DOE’s Loan Programs Office announced two conditional commitments and one loan closing to power producers in Puerto Rico. Each supports a project contracted with the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority. The announcements include:
- The closing of a $584.5 million loan guarantee to subsidiaries of Convergent Energy to finance a 100 MW solar farm with a 55 MW (55 MWh) battery energy storage system (BESS) in the municipality of Coamo and BESS installations in the municipalities of Caguas (25MW/100MWh), Peñuelas (100MW/400MWh), and Ponce (up to 100MW/400MWh)
- A conditional commitment for a loan guarantee of up to $133.6 million to a subsidiary of Infinigen for a 32.1 MW solar farm with an integrated 14.45 MW (4.76 MWh) BESS, and a co-located standalone 50 MW (200 MWh) BESS expansion in the municipality of Yabucoa
- A conditional commitment for a loan guarantee of up to $489.4 million to a subsidiary of Pattern Energy for three stand-alone BESS in the municipalities of Arecibo (50 MW/200 MWh), and Santa Isabel (50 MW /200 MWh and 80 MW/320 MW), and a 70 MW solar farm with an integrated BESS in the municipality of Arecibo.
If all are finalized, these projects would more than double LPO’s support for utility-scale solar generation and battery energy storage in Puerto Rico.
LPO provides low-cost financing and a rigorous due diligence process, making it a valuable resource for Puerto Rico as it works to rebuild an affordable, reliable, and clean energy system. As a result of reliance on imported fuel, the persistent threat of tropical storms, and underinvested infrastructure, Puerto Ricans today face average energy costs that are twice the US average – all while consuming only one-quarter of the energy of the US per capita.
LPO’s initial loan to a power producer in Puerto Rico, Project Marahu, closed in October 2024, and when complete will add more than 200 MW of solar and up to 285 MW of stand-alone energy storage to Puerto Rico’s grid.
Through its September 2023 partial loan guarantee to Project Hestia, LPO also supports virtual power plant (VPP)-ready rooftop solar and battery storage installations in Puerto Rico. As a nationwide project, Hestia’s sponsor is committed to at least 20% of installations under Project Hestia going to homeowners in Puerto Rico.
As part of its procurement plan, Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority seeks to install 1,500 MW of battery storage and requires a minimum capacity of storage to be co-located with each utility-scale solar project. Energy storage systems currently online in Puerto Rico are being dispatched every day.
When including Marahu, LPO’s closed and conditionally committed financing supports over 100% of the capacity Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority aimed to procure under its initial request for energy storage project proposals, the first of six.
Read more: Cleantech investments to top fossil fuels for the first time in 2025
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Chevy just introduced new deals on the Equinox and Blazer EV models to make them even more affordable. With 0% interest and a new trade-in bonus, Chevy is offering over $5,000 in savings.
Chevy adds new Equinox and Blazer EV deals in January
Although the Chevy Equinox EV is already “the most affordable” EV in its class with over 315 miles range, it’s getting even cheaper.
Earlier this week, Chevy launched new deals on the 2024 Equinox and Blazer EV models. According to a note sent to dealers, viewed by CarsDirect, the electric SUVs are now available with 0% APR financing for 60 months. You can also choose from 0.9% AP for 72 months and 2.9% APR for 84 months.
This marks the best financing offer on Chevy’s newest EVs to date. The previous best rates were 0.9% APR for 60 months, 3.9% for 72 months, and 5.9% for the longer 84-month option.
On a 7-year $45,000 loan, online auto research firm CarsDirect estimates the new deals amount to around a $5,200 price cut. The lower APR rates are already offered on the Chevrolet Silverado EV pickup.
In addition, Chevy is offering a trade-in bonus of up to $3,000 on the Silverado EV and $1,000 on the electric Equinox and Blazer models. If you choose to lease, the bonus is cut in half: $1,500 for the Silverado and $500 for the electric SUVs.
Chevy’s new EV deals started on January 14 and run through March 3, 2025. The deals come as rivals like Hyundai and Ford recently launched new EV promotions.
On Thursday, Hyundai launched a new promo on the upgraded 2025 IONIQ 5, which includes monthly leases as low as $199 and a free ChargePoint home EV charger (or $400 charging credit). Meanwhile, Ford extended its “Power Promise” program earlier this month, which also includes a free home charger, among several other benefits.
The 2024 Chevy Equinox EV started at $41,900 with up to 315 miles range. Prices for the electric Chevy Blazer start at $43,690 with up to 279 miles range.
If you are ready to try out Chevy’s new electric SUVs for yourself, we’ve got you covered. You can use our links below to view offers on the Chevy Equinox, Silverado, and Blazer EV models near you.
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In the Electrek Podcast, we discuss the most popular news in the world of sustainable transport and energy. In this week’s episode, we discuss non-Tesla EVs getting Supercharger access, Cybertruck sales in the spotlight, Rivian getting some money from Biden, and more.
The show is live every Friday at 4 p.m. ET on Electrek’s YouTube channel.
As a reminder, we’ll have an accompanying post, like this one, on the site with an embedded link to the live stream. Head to the YouTube channel to get your questions and comments in.
After the show ends at around 5 p.m. ET, the video will be archived on YouTube and the audio on all your favorite podcast apps:
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Here are a few of the articles that we will discuss during the podcast:
Here’s the live stream for today’s episode starting at 4:00 p.m. ET (or the video after 5 p.m. ET):
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