The fire at the Rivian plant in Illinois damaged several electric vehicles, with no injuries reported by Reuters

(Reuters) – A fire broke out in a parking lot at Rivian’s (NASDAQ: ) Automotive manufacturing plant in Normal, Illinois late on Saturday, damaging many of its electric vehicles, the U.S. startup said on Sunday.

No injuries were reported and the cause of the fire was under investigation, a company spokesman told Reuters. The fire broke out in a parking lot on the north side of the four-million-square-foot plant, located 130 miles (209 km) south of Chicago, and the assembly plant was not affected, the Normal Fire Department said in a statement to Reuters. .

Rivian has not confirmed the number and type of vehicles affected. Rivian, known for its R1S SUVs and R1T pickups, is expanding its Normal plant to produce the smaller, less expensive R2 SUVs, which are expected to be launched in 2026 and seen as critical to its success. The company this year closed the factory for three weeks for a major retooling aimed at streamlining production and cutting costs. The electric vehicle maker manufactures all of its vehicles at the plant in Normal, with a second assembly plant planned in Georgia. Last week, it temporarily suspended production of its commercial delivery vans used by retail giant Amazon.com (NASDAQ: ) due to a parts shortage, but expects to recover all lost production.