Ford unveils plans for seven new electric models in Europe. Says the production of electric vehicles will be doubled. Also includes plans about a battery assembly site in Germany and a nickel cell manufacturing joint venture in Turkey. The plans are part of its aggressive push towards electric vehicles on the continent.
“Our march toward an all-electric future is an absolute necessity for Ford to meet the mobility needs of customers across a transforming Europe,” said Stuart Rowley, chair, Ford of Europe. By 2024, Ford plans to introduce three new electric passenger vehicles in Europe. Another four new electric commercial vehicles as well. With this move, it plans to sell more than 600,000 EVs in Europe by 2026.
The automaker states that the new plan with help it reaches global sales, by selling more than 2 million EVs a year. It would enable the company in achieving an adjusted operating profit margin of 10% by 2026. The profit margin will be part of a broader $50 billion investment in electrification kick-start. As part of its push, Ford deepened its existing partnership with Volkswagen under which the U.S. carmaker will produce a second electric vehicle for the European market based on its German rival’s platform. Ford will double its planned volume of vehicles to be produced based on Volkswagen’s modular electric-drive platform, known as MEB, to 1.2 million units over a six-year time frame. This will include investments of $2 billion at Ford’s Cologne site in Germany as well as a new battery assembly facility scheduled to start operations in 2024.
Joint venture with SK and Koc Holding
South Korean battery maker SK, Ford, and Koc Holding signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to form a joint venture. This venture will produce EV battery cells in Turkey. SK said in a statement that the plant is targeted to start by 2025 and aims to have an annual production capacity of 30-45 gigawatt-hours (GWh).
SK Innovation wholly owned battery unit, which counts Ford Motor, Hyundai Motor, and Volkswagen AG among its customers, announced last year a plan to invest 10.2 trillion won ($8.22 billion) with Ford to build three battery plants in the United States. The companies intend to create nearly 11,000 jobs by opening assembly and battery plants in Stanton, Tennessee, and two additional battery factories in Glendale, Kentucky, as part of Ford’s previously announced plan to spend more than $30 billion through 2030 on electrification, Ford said. Plants on both sites will open in 2025.