Video Transcript
More than a decade after it was first established, electric vehicle (EV) maker Rivian began delivering its first vehicle — a fully electric pickup — to customers two years ago, finally fulfilling its goals of providing car buyers with options when it comes to zero-emission transportation.
Soon, that effort will even extend to its trucks and SUVs as they roll off the assembly line.
Rivian announced in early June that it had received the final components needed to build a large-scale wind turbine at its manufacturing campus in Normal, Illinois.
The company first announced plans for the turbine last summer under an agreement with Virginia renewable energy developer Apex. At a height of under 510 feet, the turbine could offer a capacity of 2.8 megawatts and generate 10 million kilowatt-hours of electricity per year — enough to power nearly 900 average homes or, in Rivian’s case, to make sure every vehicle that emerges from the Normal plant gets its first charge with zero-carbon power.
Rivian officials estimate that the turbine will be able to run for 25 years, preventing about 177,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions — or a year’s worth of emissions from about 34,000 internal-combustion engine cars. It is expected to run at about the same volume as a refrigerator while saving the company millions in energy costs.
Rivian said construction is underway and that the turbine would be up and running in “a few months.”
