Ford Motor Co. is boosting its electric-vehicle lineup with seven new models over the next two years across its passenger car and commercial van range to target sales of more than 600,000 battery-powered vehicles.
The U.S. carmaker is also doubling to $2 billion its planned investment at its key production site in Cologne, Germany, to make electric vehicles as well as a battery assembly facility starting in 2024, Ford said Monday. The push is part of the automaker’s global plan to reach more than 2 million in EV sales.
"Ford is all-in and moving fast to meet the demand in Europe and around the globe,” Chief Executive Officer Jim Farley said in a statement.
Ford earlier this month took further steps to accelerate its shift to an electric future with the creation of an all-electric unit dubbed "Ford Model e” and a combustion-engine division "Ford Blue. ” A year ago, the company pledged to go almost completely electric in Europe by the end of the decade, a region where it has long sought to improve returns from its passenger car business.
Separately, Ford also announced an agreement to build a commercial vehicles battery plant with its Turkish partners. Koc Holding AS, Turkey’s biggest conglomerate, signed an initial accord to be part of the joint venture between Ford and South Korea’s SK Innovation Co. to make 30 to 45 gigawatt hours of batteries.
