Ford: Multi-energy instead of just electric

Course change at Ford: According to recent statements, the company intends to continue offering internal combustion engine vehicles and hybrids in Europe beyond 2030. Ford justifies this with the sluggish growth of electromobility in Europe. For passenger cars, the goal was to offer purely electric models by 2030, while two-thirds of light commercial vehicles were to be either fully electric or equipped with plug-in hybrid drives by 2030. Marin Gjaja, Chief Operating Officer of the Ford Model E Electrification Division, described this target to the British platform Autocar as “too ambitious.” He explained:

“I do not believe we can fully commit to anything until our customers decide they are fully on board, and that varies worldwide at different speeds.”

According to Gjaja, the still high battery costs and the uncertainty about legislation and various incentive programs lead customers to reconsider purchasing electric vehicles. This is why Ford will continue to offer internal combustion engines, primarily as hybrids. Gjaja told Autocar:

“We do not believe that going fully electric by 2030 is a good decision for our company and especially for our customers.”

Gjaja stated that electrification is still a “long-term goal.” Instead of purely electric models, he now communicates a “highly electrified fleet,” perhaps even fully electrified, if battery costs and energy density can be managed. However, he questioned the timeframe:

“That is a goal, and is that in ten years or thirty years? I do not think anyone's crystal ball is good enough to say.”

Therefore, Ford is currently developing a “multi-energy platform” for European cars. Ford originally intended to transition all of Europe to electric vehicles and opened the Electric Vehicle Center in Cologne in 2023, where the Explorer and Capri are being built. Saarlouis will be closed, and the Romanian plant in Craiova, where the electric Puma was once to be built, was transferred to the Turkish partner Ford Otosan in 2022. This leaves the plant in Valencia, Spain. Gjaja also remained cryptic here: “We will bring something to Valencia, but we have not yet committed to what that will be,” he said, adding:

“We are still working on it. I think it will be multi-energy. That is our current thinking because we believe this gives us the best chance of success when looking at the European market and knowing where we stand in terms of adoption.”