Photo: Salwan Georges | The Washington Post | Getty Images
Auto companies announce a hike in their electric vehicle products amid inflation, pushing prices of essential materials for EV batteries to go high.
Several companies, including Tesla, Rivian, and Cadillac, among others, acknowledge the volatility of the market condition and how inflation pushed prices higher. Battery prices have declined steadily, but the current condition indicates a possible increase.
According to a trusted firm, battery prices are bound to skyrocket — increasing up to 20%. The projection of the ‘sharp’ increase has prompted several automakers to impose price jumps. As per the firm, the supply chain has been disrupted because of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Now that prices have been increased, the average American will have a hard time purchasing electronic vehicles — which are expensive, to begin with.
Even Tesla, the leading innovator of electronic cars, had to impose the price hike twice in March so the company could address “significant recent inflation issues.” Tesla is known to be one of the first to initiate price reduction as part of their strategy to make zero-emission vehicles marketable to the public.”
The prices of Tesla’s cheapest vehicles have skyrocketed in recent weeks due to market volatility. The cost went from $38,190 last year and now sits at a whopping $46,990 – an increase of 23%.
The auto company Rivia has also begun increasing prices on their products in early March. They announced an 18% rise in the price of their R1T model, now valued at $79,500, while the R1S is 21 percent more expensive than before – selling off at $84,500.
The Rivian Company simultaneously announced a lesser offer for their electric motors to compensate for the hikes on 4-wheeled counterparts.
“In speaking with many of you over the last two days, I fully realize and acknowledge how upset many of you felt,” Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe said to the stakeholders after controversies surfaced following the announcement.
Scaringe explained, “Since originally setting our pricing structure, and most especially in recent months, a lot has changed. Everything from semiconductors to sheet metal to seats has become more expensive.”
The Lucid Group is hinting that they will be increasing prices for all of their Air Luxury sedans except one. The company announced a 10-12% price increase on the models.
Lucid CEO Peter Rawlinson told customers that the company would honor the rates of the reservations and orders made before the announcement. “The world has changed dramatically from the time we first announced Lucid Air back in September 2020,” Rawlinson said in a conference call.
In a similar move, General Motors announced a $3,000 price increase for the Cadillac Lyriq crossover EV, which is now offered at62,990.
Meanwhile, the Ford F-150 Lightning has surprised competitors with lower prices – its debut at just under $40 thousand make it one of the more affordable electric vehicle in today’s market.
Ford management said they were committed to keeping prices stable even as raw materials costs rose.
The Vice President of global EV programs in Ford said, “We’re going to still keep it for everybody, but we’ll have to react on commodities, I’m sure.”
