A few months after announcing a “radical” split structure that places its electric vehicle future in a new segment called Model E, Ford is discussing more details about obtaining battery production capacity and basic raw materials for power all those electric vehicles that definitely aren’t. vaporware cars. By the end of 2023, Ford plans to have enough battery supply to support the production of 270,000 Mustang Mach-E, 150,000 Transit EV, 150,000 F-150 Lightnings and 30,000 units of a mystery and brand new mid-size SUV intended for launch. Europe.
What he didn’t mention, however, is a Bloomberg report Wednesday that indicates the company plans to lay off up to 8,000 people in the Ford Blue segment, which is now responsible for its inherited internal combustion engine business.
Ford 2023 EV production plans. Image: Ford
Part of the plan unveiled today includes upgrades to the batteries used in the Mustang Mach-E and F-150 Lightning electric vehicles. Add lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries manufactured by Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL) for Mach-E in 2023 and F-150 Lightning in 2024.
Ford says these will be available along with batteries with the existing nickel cobalt manganese (NCM) chemistry, which is a similar approach to Tesla. In Tesla’s first-quarter earnings report earlier this year, the company said that nearly half of Tesla’s vehicles produced in the first quarter were equipped with a lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery, which it did not contain nickel or cobalt “, including most standard range vehicles. Ford will take the same approach using them for standard-range battery packs, playing with the strengths of LFP batteries, which are usually cheaper but not as energy-dense.
Ford says it has 100 percent of the battery cell production capacity needed to build 600,000 electric cars and trucks annually by “end of 2023,” among the new packages, as well as LG’s doubled capacity in Wroclaw Energy Solution, Poland, production facilities and production of additional cells. capacity from SK On.
Looking ahead to its goal of building 2 million electric vehicles worldwide by the end of 2026, Ford announced a non-binding independent MOU with battery giant CATL to “explore cooperation” to build batteries in China, Europe and North America. This is in addition to the previously announced battery plants in Kentucky and Tennessee, as well as agreements with mining companies to directly obtain the necessary raw materials, including “most of the nickel needed by 2026 and beyond.” Ford says it plans to invest $ 50 billion in electric vehicles by the end of 2026.