Photo: Rivian
When Trevor Milton was still Nikola’s CEO, the company had an ambitious plan to make hydrogen along the U.S.’s most important roads through power purchase agreements (PPA). They would ensure cheap electricity for Nikola’s electrolyzers. Rivian will follow a similar strategy with PPAs, but not to make hydrogen: it will be to make cars.
The company signed a PPA with Apex Clean Energy to buy 50 megawatts (MW) of electricity. Apex Clean Energy will generate that with its Goose Creek wind Farm in Piatt County, Illinois. As you probably already guessed, that electricity will feed Rivian’s plant in Normal, in the same American state.
The issue is that the Goose Creek wind farm is not ready yet. It will only be finished in 2024. It will be able to generate 300 MW, meaning Rivian bought 16.7% of the power plant’s capacity. This is Rivian’s first large-scale procurement.
Rivian said the wind power from Apex Clean Energy would be equivalent to 75% of its Normal plant’s needs. The automotive startup also has onsite generation (possibly with solar panels) and other renewable energy supply deals. However, Rivian did not state if that is enough to cover all its energy needs in the Illinois factory with renewable sources.
Besides powering its only plant with electricity generated by wind, Rivian said it also wants its Rivian Adventure Network and Waypoints to be powered exclusively with green energy. It is not clear if Apex Clean Energy will help with that through new contracts or other wind farms.
The two companies also did not disclose how they plan to deal with the fact that the wind does not always blow, and the sun is not always shining everywhere. In other words, the intermittent nature of these two energy sources usually requires some way to store the generated energy to peak demand hours. The Apex Clean Energy website suggests the company will have energy storage systems (ESSs) in Goose Creek.
The issue is that the Goose Creek wind farm is not ready yet. It will only be finished in 2024. It will be able to generate 300 MW, meaning Rivian bought 16.7% of the power plant’s capacity. This is Rivian’s first large-scale procurement.
Rivian said the wind power from Apex Clean Energy would be equivalent to 75% of its Normal plant’s needs. The automotive startup also has onsite generation (possibly with solar panels) and other renewable energy supply deals. However, Rivian did not state if that is enough to cover all its energy needs in the Illinois factory with renewable sources.
Besides powering its only plant with electricity generated by wind, Rivian said it also wants its Rivian Adventure Network and Waypoints to be powered exclusively with green energy. It is not clear if Apex Clean Energy will help with that through new contracts or other wind farms.
The two companies also did not disclose how they plan to deal with the fact that the wind does not always blow, and the sun is not always shining everywhere. In other words, the intermittent nature of these two energy sources usually requires some way to store the generated energy to peak demand hours. The Apex Clean Energy website suggests the company will have energy storage systems (ESSs) in Goose Creek.
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