Amazon investing $700 million in Plymouth company

A Plymouth Township company is getting a big fiscal boost from Amazon.

"It's great news for Rivian because it shows they're getting needed funds to take them to the next level," said Plymouth Township Supervisor Kurt Heise. 

The retail giant is leading a 700-million-dollar investment into Rivian, a local company known for its electric transportation.

Amazon declined to be interviewed, but in a statement Amazon CEO Worldwide Consumer Jeff Wilkie said "We're inspired by Rivian's vision for the future of electric transportation."

It's unclear how much of that investment is coming straight from Amazon however.

"This is actually a group led by Amazon so we don't know how much of that 700 million comes from Amazon and how much from other investors," said Jeff Gilbert, an automotive reporter with WWJ 950, "but it's money that Rivian can use to take these concepts and actually produce them."

There had been speculation that General Motors would be part of the investment, however GM provided a statement saying "we admire Rivian's contribution to the future of zero emissions and...an all electric future. We are making no further comment."

Officials say they expect this investment to spark other deals in the Township in the near future. 

"I suspect now that we will see even more Interest in Plymouth Township because people want to be with a winner and Rivian is a great company," Heise said, "and they're going to be looking for more suppliers, more engineers and more folks to help them succeed,