Ford's plan to build the battery plant near Marshall, Michigan, hinges on a judgment that lower cost and faster recharging will attract many customers, including commercial fleet buyers, to accept the limitations of lithium-iron-phosphate, or LFP batteries.
The BlueOval Battery Park Michigan project is a"substantial step in the path to affordability and the path to 8 per cent" margins, Ford Vice President Lisa Drake said on Monday during a media call. Since then, diplomatic tensions between the United States and China have escalated. Also, Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act, known as the IRA, which ties a significant share of federal subsidies to domestic production and raw materials content.
The Marshall factory is one of four battery plants Ford plans has so far announced plans to build in North America and Europe.