AT&T to buy Rivian electric vehicles in a pilot deal to cut costs and emissions. According to a statement released by the firms on Thursday, the United States telecom provider AT&T (T.N.) will participate in a pilot program to acquire certain electric vehicles from the startup Rivian (RIVN.O.). The experiment aims to assess methods to decrease costs, reduce carbon emissions, and enhance safety.

At the end of the previous month, Rivian terminated its exclusive arrangement with its largest shareholder, Amazon (AMZN.O.), for its delivery vans, allowing the firm to attract more clients. This is the first deal that Rivian has ever made.

Around&T anticipates adding Rivian electric commercial vans, R1T pickup trucks, and R1S sport utility vehicles to its fleet at the beginning of 2024.

The businesses did not reveal the financial parameters of the contract or the number of automobiles AT&T would purchase as part of the transaction.

For a considerable amount of time, AT&T has been investing in transitioning its commercial fleet to cars that run on alternative fuels, such as hybrid electric vehicles and compressed natural gas.

“This pilot is another important step in our ongoing efforts toward sustainability, reducing our carbon footprint, and embracing a cleaner future for our operations,” said Hardmon Williams, senior vice president of AT&T Connected Solutions. “We are committed to embracing future operations that are more environmentally friendly.”

The race to transition to zero-emission fleets has been triggered by environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) goals and business emission reduction targets.

On the other hand, high lending rates have made it more expensive for consumers to acquire electric vehicles, which are typically more expensive than their gas-powered equivalents. This has left customers concerned about a potential slowdown in demand for electric vehicles.

Despite this, Rivian has stated that it has observed a “great deal of interest and demand” for its vans outside of Amazon. On Thursday, the corporation informed us they would not divulge any further possible consumers.

In addition, it has reaffirmed its dedication to completing an order for one hundred thousand vehicles for Amazon by 2030. In October, Amazon said it had 10,000 of these trucks across the U.S. and Europe.

Rivian, situated in Irvine, California, increased its production target for 2023 to 54,000 units just after the month passed.