Ford to invest $3.7 billion in US production
Ford has announced an investment of 3.7 billion dollars in its production in the US states of Michigan, Ohio and Missouri. With the equivalent of 3.4 billion euros, the production of electric cars is to be strengthened and 6,200 new jobs created.
According to Ford, 1.5 billion dollars (1.4 billion euros) alone are to flow into the assembly plant in Ohio in order to assemble a new electric commercial vehicle there from the middle of the decade. The plant expansion is scheduled to begin this year. Ford has not yet disclosed further details on the new e-utility vehicle.
Ford is also investing in the announced production increase for the all-electric F-150 Lightning to 150,000 units per year at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn (Michigan) – 2,000 new jobs are planned. A total of two billion dollars is to be invested in Michigan, but not all of it is eMobility-related. It also involves the production of a new generation Mustang Coupé in Flat Rock and a new logistics centre.
A third shift is also being introduced at the assembly plant in Kansas City (Missouri) to increase production of the Transit and its electric version, the E-Transit – at a cost of $95 million. The E-Transit has been out in the USA since the beginning of February. Ford had already invested 100 million dollars in the plant for the commercial vehicle and also created 150 full-time jobs there. In addition to the vehicle itself, the battery pack is also assembled in Kansas City.
As Ford calculates, the investments and 6,200 unionised jobs at its own plants are expected to indirectly create 74,000 new jobs by the end of 2026. “I’m proud that we are investing in the Midwest and taking real action to provide better benefits and working conditions for our factory workers,” says Chairman Bill Ford.
Michigan, as the former centre of the US auto industry, has often been left out of investments in recent decades. But with the shift to electric mobility and the political situation, US corporations are once again strengthening their production locations. In January, for example, General Motors announced investments of 6.6 billion dollars in Michigan to build a battery factory and modernise its vehicle plants.
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