Nov 13 Reuters Shares of Rivian jumped over 15 on Wednesday after the electric vehicle maker announced a 5.8 billion investment from German automaker Volkswagen as part of their joint venture.

The investment boost comes at a crucial time for Rivian, which aims to cut costs, achieve profitability, and launch its smaller, more affordable R2 SUV to attract budgetconscious consumers.

The joint venture, Rivian and VW Group Technology LLC will integrate advanced electrical infrastructure and Rivian39;s software technology for both companies39; future electric vehicles.

It the investment is a vote of confidence in the EV maker39;s prospects, as support for EVs in the U.S. faces a more uncertain future, given Trump is returning to the White House, said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown.

Tesla39;s Elon Musk has been given a seat at Trump39;s top table, Streeter added, which could potentially put EV rivals like Rivian in a less favorable position in future policy decisions.

Following Trump39;s declaration of victory last week, shares of Rivian and other electric vehicle manufacturers went down, with Tesla being the only outlier.

Last week, Rivian fell short of thirdquarter revenue estimates. The Amazonbacked company has been struggling with a parts shortage, which led to a reduction in its annual production forecast in October.

Rivian still faces daunting challenges like a lack of scale, increasing competition, high capital costs and the…