More Ford EVs in the pipeline for Australia?

Following on from the Mustang Mach-E and forthcoming E-Transit, Ford has announced that it will be adding seven more electric vehicles to its European line-up by 2024.

The seven-strong list consists of three new passenger vehicles and four new commercial vans, with several heavy hitters included in the line-up.

One of the biggest inclusions is a plug-in version of the compact Puma crossover which is currently Ford’s most popular model in Europe.

The brand has also confirmed it plans to build an “all-new electric vehicle, medium-sized crossover”, which could shape up as a cousin to the Escape. It’s set to share the same MEB platform as the Volkswagen ID.4. Its name will be unveiled later this year, with production following in 2023.

The last of its passenger cars on the roster was not detailed in the brand’s release.

All four electric commercial vehicles will be variations of Transit. Two are versions of the compact European-market Transit Courier, and the other two are versions of the Transit Custom; the entry-level one-tonne van and the Tourneo.

The latter could be big news for market. Ford’s local arm has already confirmed the full-size E-Transit for Australia. Adding an electric Transit Custom could give the group a significant leg-up on the model’s key rival, the Toyota Hiace.

The news comes after Ford recently announced it would be splitting its business into two groups, with electric vehicle development to sit under the new ‘Ford Model e’ umbrella.

In order to deal with the additional production load the new models will bring, Ford has upped its investment in the Ford Cologne Electrification Centre. It expects the plant to be producing 1.2million EVs over a six-year period. It expects to be selling more than 600,000 EVs a year by 2026.

Ford also plans to increase investment with its Craiova plant in Romania. This is where the electric Puma will be built.

Lastly, the brand has also confirmed big investment in battery production in Turkey, via an agreement with Koç Holding. Pending some final approvals, the Koç Holding is set to start building high nickel NMC cells for Ford by the middle of the decade.