Ford declares $2 billion Louisville EV meeting plant funding

Ford on Monday introduced it could make investments $2 billion in a Louisville, Kentucky, meeting plant geared toward rolling out extra reasonably priced electrical automobiles.

The funding comes on prime of $3 billion already deliberate for a battery park in Michigan. Collectively the services will create or safe practically 4,000 new jobs, Ford mentioned in a information launch.

“We took a radical method to a really exhausting problem: Create reasonably priced automobiles that delight prospects in each method that issues – design, innovation, flexibility, house, driving pleasure, and value of possession – and do it with American employees,” Ford CEO Jim Farley mentioned within the launch.

Ford mentioned the Louisville plant will safe about 2,200 jobs, however famous that after it is retooled for EV manufacturing, it’ll make use of about 600 fewer employees than in its present configuration.

The Detroit automaker’s new “Common EV Program” centered round low-cost EVs will begin with a midsize, four-door electrical pickup, produced on the Louisville Meeting Plant. That car launch is slated for 2027.

Executives had teased the announcement on the corporate’s newest earnings name as its subsequent “Mannequin T second.” Ford mentioned the beginning value of the brand new EV truck, $30,000, shall be roughly the identical because the famed Mannequin T, when adjusted for inflation.

Ford famous that new lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries for the brand new household of EVs shall be assembled within the U.S. and never imported from China.

Farley mentioned throughout an occasion in Louisville on Monday that the announcement comes because the automotive trade sits is at a crossroads as a result of new know-how and new competitors.

“We knew that the Chinese language could be the foremost participant for us globally, corporations like BYD, new startups from world wide, huge know-how has their ambition within the auto house. They’re all coming for us, legacy automotive corporations,” Farley mentioned. “We wanted a radical method and a very robust problem to create an reasonably priced car.”

Correction: This text has been up to date to appropriate that the Louisville Meeting Plant will safe about 2,200 jobs. A earlier model misstated the job affect.

This story is creating. Please examine again for updates.

— CNBC’s Phil LeBeau contributed to this report.