Ford invests $5B in EV production, overhauling Kentucky plant

Ford Motor Company planned to spend nearly $2 billion to convert its Louisville Assembly Plant to produce a new line of electric vehicles, or EVs, according to a Monday statement. President and CEO Jim Farley described the Kentucky investment as Ford reinventing itself. Ford planned to produce a family of affordable electric vehicles, starting with a midsize four-door electric pickup truck produced at the Louisville plant. Before then, the plant will undergo a 52,000-square-foot expansion and receive digital infrastructure upgrades, giving Louisville the fastest Ford plant network in the world, according to the release.

The Louisville investment came after another $3 billion investment in BlueOval Battery Park Michigan plant, which will produce the batteries used in Ford’s EV truck. Both investments are expected to create nearly 4,000 Ford jobs while partnering with dozens of new domestic suppliers, the release added.

What triggered the change? Ford credited business incentives from the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority for the plan. Ford and the state of Kentucky are introducing the world to the future of automotive production, Gov. Andy Beshear said in a Monday statement.

What kind of cars will Ford be making now? Ford planned to produce a family of EVs, but only publicly revealed plans for the midsize truck, which is expected to hit the market in 2027. The company highlighted how its EV platform required fewer components than a traditional car, and debuted a revised assembly line format. Three auxiliary lines will branch out and run simultaneously, then combine, in contrast to a traditional single conveyor belt, according to the company.

Dig deeper: Listen to Mary Muncy’s report on The World and Everything in It about low EV sales seen in recent years.