Ford warns of ‘significant’ job cuts as it picks Valencia for EV production

• US automaker plans to electrify all of its vehicles in Europe by 2030 and vans by 2035.
• Ford warns of ‘significant’ job cuts as it chooses Valencia for EV production.
• Ford’s new proprietary system will be implemented in factories around the world.

Ford has chosen its Valencia plant in Spain to produce battery cars, resulting in the end of vehicle production at rival site Saarlouis in Germany, as the automaker reorganises its European factories in preparation for an all-electric future in the region.

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Even at Valencia, the US automaker plans “significant” staff reductions because the production of electric vehicles requires fewer workers, it announced on Wednesday.

European automakers are converting some factories to produce electric vehicles as the region prepares to switch to selling only electric or hydrogen models, with plants that are unable to secure electric car production risking closure once the region makes the switch.

As a result of a vote by the European Parliament, Europe is poised to end sales of gasoline and diesel vehicles by 2035, although some countries, such as Norway, are moving sooner.

The American automaker plans to electrify all of its vehicles in the region by 2030, and its vans by 2035.

Ford was deciding between Valencia and Saarlouis for an investment in the automaker’s proprietary electric vehicle technology.

The company has already announced that it will manufacture battery-powered vans in Turkey, as well as electric cars in Cologne, Germany, using Volkswagen’s technology, and through a joint venture in Romania.

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The decision made on Wednesday means that Saarlouis, which recruits 4,600 people, is the only Ford plant in the region that will not produce electric vehicles in the future.

Ford’s new proprietary system will be implemented in factories around the world, but the company anticipates having only one European production centre for vehicles utilising the technology.