Ford Motor may soon begin assembling electric vehicle batteries at a new battery assembly facility in Craiova, Romania. According to local sources consulted by Economedia, the EV battery cells will be based on designs from another region, making Romania the last step in Ford’s EV battery manufacturing pipeline. Ford has neither denied nor confirmed the validity of the information.
The revelation comes amid a global slowdown in electric vehicle sales that has lasted several months and left thousands of unsold battery electric cars collecting dust in ports and car lots. Ford is one of the many established automakers that had to go back to the drawing board and rethink electrification plans as it became clear that consumers simply weren’t interested.
Although most automakers haven’t completely abandoned electrification, most are now scaling back their plans to align with current market trends. Information from Economedia indicates that Ford will develop the assembly line under its engine division and with its capital. Ford previously announced that it was building three EVs in Craiova: an electrified version of the Puma compact SUV, the Tourneo Courier (E-Tourneo Courier) and the Transit Courier (E-Transit Courier).
In July 2023, Ford Otosan also announced that it was investing nearly $550,000 in developing the Courier range’s next generation at the Craiova plant. This investment would increase Ford Otosan’s total capacity from 250,000 electric vehicles annually to 272,000. Ford Motor currently has a 41% stake in Ford Otosan alongside Koç Holding A.Ș., which also has a 41% stake.
Ford is constructing another electric-vehicle battery-assembly plant in Cologne, Germany, to manufacture battery packs for the Ford Explorer and Capri. Although these battery packs could also be ferried to the vehicles produced at the Craiova facility, Economedia’s sources report that it may choose to assemble the batteries locally. The EV battery cells headed to Craiova for assembly will reportedly come from the Romvolt factory, a facility currently under construction in the eastern Romania city of Galati.
Unconfirmed reports also suggest that the Craiova battery assembly plant will be at the same location as Ford’s motor production plant. Ford Otosan has owned the plant since 2022, and the joint venture is set to produce the Puma Gen-E, the E-Tourneo Courier and the E-Transit Courier. All three upcoming electric vehicle models will be built on the same platform and use a similar 55 kWh battery pack. Ford has declined to confirm the information provided by Economedia sources.
Other EV makers, such as NIO Inc. (NYSE: NIO), are also coming up with their own strategies to keep their production costs manageable in a bid to obtain a larger share of the market in the different regions where they see potential for massive growth.
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