Ford plans a full-electric version of its best-selling European passenger car, the Puma crossover.
Ford Motor is launching seven full-electric vehicles in Europe including a battery-electric version of the Puma small crossover, its best-selling passenger car in the region.
The three new full-electric passenger cars and four new electric vans will be launched by 2024 and will all be built in Europe, Ford said in a statement on Monday.
The first EV will be a midsize crossover that will go into production at Ford's factory in Cologne, Germany, this year. The crossover will use Volkswagen Group's MEB electric platform that underpins the VW ID4, among other VW Group models.
Ford had already said it would build a new EV in Cologne, but this is the first mention of the model's body style.
The electric crossover will have a 500 km (311 mile) driving range on a single charge. Its name will be revealed later in 2022, with production commencing in 2023, Ford said.
The seven new battery-electric vehicle launches will bring the number of full-electric cars sold by Ford in Europe to nine.
A second vehicle, which Ford said was a "sports crossover," will also be built at Cologne starting in 2024. The vehicle is also expected to be based on the MEB platform.
The electric sports crossover means that EV production at the Cologne factory will increase to 1.2 million vehicles over a six-year timeframe.
Investment in the new electric passenger vehicles to be built in Cologne is expected to be $2 billion, Ford said. The investment includes a new battery assembly facility scheduled to start operations in 2024.
The Puma electric crossover will arrive in 2024 and will be built at Ford's factory in Craiova, Romania. Ford will also build the new Transit Courier and Tourneo Courier vans in Craiova from 2023, with all-electric versions coming in 2024. The vans are currently produced in Turkey.
With its expanded lineup, Ford expects its annual sales of electric vehicles in Europe to exceed 600,000 units in 2026. The automaker also affirmed its intention to deliver a 6 percent EBIT margin in Europe in 2023.
"Our march toward an all-electric future is an absolute necessity for Ford to meet the mobility needs of customers across a transforming Europe," Ford of Europe Chairman Stuart Rowley said in a statement.
The Ford Transit light commercial vehicle range's four new electric models will be:
Ford also said on Monday that it had signed an agreement with SK On and Koc Holding to jointly build a battery production facility in Turkey.
The new EVs deepens Ford's industrial partnership with VW Group.
In a separate statement, VW Group's technology's chief, Thomas Schmall said: "Profitability and speed are now crucial for finally achieving the breakthrough of e-mobility in Europe. We are tackling both together with Ford."
Ford said the EV push will help the company to achieve zero emissions for all its vehicle sales in Europe by 2035 when the European Union plans to ban internal combustion engine vehicles.
The automaker said last year that its passenger lineup in Europe will become all-electric by 2030 and it expects two-thirds of commercial van sales to be all-electric or plug-in hybrids by the same date.
The announcement builds on the recent news that Ford is splitting its passenger-car business into the electric Model e division and the Ford Blue combustion engine unit to better prepare the automaker for the switch to electrification.
Together with Ford Pro, the business unit focused on Ford’s commercial vehicle business, these two business units will define Ford’s future in Europe, the automaker said.
The seven new battery-electric vehicle launches will bring the number of full-electric cars sold by Ford in Europe to nine. Ford launched the all-electric Mach-E sports car in Europe last year and Mach-E GT this year. Its first battery-electric van, the E-Transit, will go on sale in the next quarter.
