Ford has announced that it will invest $300 million to build a new all-electric light commercial vehicle at its Craiova Assembly Plant in Romania.
The first ever all-electric Ford volume vehicle to be built in Romania will debut in 2024. The announcement follows the recent commitment made by Ford that its entire commercial vehicle range will be zero-emissions capable, all-electric or plug-in hybrid, by 2024, with two-thirds of Ford’s commercial vehicle sales expected to be all-electric or plug-in hybrid by 2030.
Ford’s overall investment in its Romanian manufacturing operations is close to $2 billion since acquiring the Craiova facility in 2008.
Significant upgrades have been made to Craiova’s vehicle operations in recent years, with more than 600 robots installed to further improve efficiency and quality in the body, stamping, paint, trim, and chassis shops. Around 6,000 people are employed in its world-class vehicle and engine assembly operations.
The fact that another plant in Europe is set to start manufacturing EVs highlights the true commitment to an electric future for Ford, according to Stuart Rowley, president, Ford of Europe.
“Adding an all-electric version in 2024 means Craiova will be our third facility in Europe to build an all-electric vehicle,” he said. “It follows recent investments this year in the Ford Cologne Electrified Vehicle Centre in Germany and Ford Otosan’s Kocaeli plant in Turkey and sends another clear signal that we are on an accelerated path to providing our commercial vehicle customers with a zero emissions future in Europe.”
As we are waiting for the new light-commercial vehicle, Ford unveiled its new E-Transit, an all-electric version of its best-selling cargo van. It will be equipped with a usable battery capacity of 67kWh offering an estimated driving range of up to 217 miles on the combined WLTP cycle.