Photo: Ford.com
Rural Western Tennessee has recently seen a surge in activity just North of Memphis with the construction of a new automotive manufacturing facility. Ford Motor Company announced today that the future home of its EV operations 'BlueOval City' is coming along.
The $5.6 billion mega-facility will house the manufacturing of Ford's next-generation F-Series pickups and advanced batteries. The massive complex spans six square miles and dwarfs the historic Rouge Complex in Michigan, created by founding father Henry Ford to manufacture Model T's over a century ago by a multiple of three. The facility is slated to be the largest, most advanced, and most efficient in the iconic automaker's 118-year history.
Included in the announcement were details regarding two new battery plants to be built in Central Kentucky in partnership with SK Innovations. These plants will provide the batteries for Ford and Lincoln electric vehicles.
Together the three battery production facilities costing over $11 billion will enable 129-gigawatt hours of production capacity for Ford. More importantly for the local economies, the Stanton, Tennessee plant will employ approximately 6000 people while the two Kentucky plants will create 5000 jobs, adding to Ford's lead of being the largest employer of hourly automotive workers in America.
“This is a transformative moment where Ford will lead America’s transition to electric vehicles and usher in a new era of clean, carbon-neutral manufacturing,” said Ford Executive Chair Bill Ford. “With this investment and a spirit of innovation, we can achieve goals once thought mutually exclusive – protect our planet, build great electric vehicles Americans will love and contribute to our nation’s prosperity.”
Ford's investment in the announced projects comes to the tune of $7 billion and is said to be the largest single manufacturing investment at one time by any automotive manufacturer in the U.S. A staggering number yet, represents less than 25% of the $30 billion the company has committed to spending on its EV future through 2025.
The facilities are planned to be production-ready in 2025. BlueOval City alone will be among the largest automotive manufacturing campuses in the U.S., just as the Rouge Complex was back in the early days of the company. All three facilities will employ the same ideology as Ford's continued commitment to using renewable energy and having minimal impact on the surrounding environment.
In addition, the company has partnered with Redwood Materials to handle domestic battery recycling challenges and help create and streamline domestic supply chains in an effort to make batteries more efficient and less expensive.
Included in the announcement were details regarding two new battery plants to be built in Central Kentucky in partnership with SK Innovations. These plants will provide the batteries for Ford and Lincoln electric vehicles.
Together the three battery production facilities costing over $11 billion will enable 129-gigawatt hours of production capacity for Ford. More importantly for the local economies, the Stanton, Tennessee plant will employ approximately 6000 people while the two Kentucky plants will create 5000 jobs, adding to Ford's lead of being the largest employer of hourly automotive workers in America.
“This is a transformative moment where Ford will lead America’s transition to electric vehicles and usher in a new era of clean, carbon-neutral manufacturing,” said Ford Executive Chair Bill Ford. “With this investment and a spirit of innovation, we can achieve goals once thought mutually exclusive – protect our planet, build great electric vehicles Americans will love and contribute to our nation’s prosperity.”
Ford's investment in the announced projects comes to the tune of $7 billion and is said to be the largest single manufacturing investment at one time by any automotive manufacturer in the U.S. A staggering number yet, represents less than 25% of the $30 billion the company has committed to spending on its EV future through 2025.
The facilities are planned to be production-ready in 2025. BlueOval City alone will be among the largest automotive manufacturing campuses in the U.S., just as the Rouge Complex was back in the early days of the company. All three facilities will employ the same ideology as Ford's continued commitment to using renewable energy and having minimal impact on the surrounding environment.
In addition, the company has partnered with Redwood Materials to handle domestic battery recycling challenges and help create and streamline domestic supply chains in an effort to make batteries more efficient and less expensive.
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