Ford’s Global Management Commits to Assign Almussafes Factory to Produce Passenger Vehicle Amidst Uncertainty over Electrification Investments

Ford’s global management has made a commitment to assign the Almussafes (Valencia) factory to produce a passenger vehicle in order to maintain sufficient workload while decisions about the future of electrification are being made. This decision was conveyed by Ford’s global president, Jim Farley, during a meeting with the workers’ representatives and the European Works Council in Dunton (United Kingdom), which was described as positive and constructive.

The Almussafes factory was left with only one manufacturing model, the Kuga, after ceasing production of the Transit van on April 17, and is currently under a temporary employment regulation (ERTE) until the 19th of the same month. The assignment of a new model ensures the immediate future of the factory, which employs close to 4,800 people.

Over the past six years, the Valencian plant has seen a significant decrease in production, going from almost 370,000 cars of five different models in 2018 to just under 212,000 cars last year. This drop of 42% was exacerbated by the loss of production of the Mondeo, S-Max, and Galaxy models. The factory has been facing uncertainty regarding investments for the production of electric vehicles despite being chosen in 2022 to produce a new electric vehicle platform starting in 2025.

The global management’s commitment to Almussafes comes at a time when the factory is operating under an extended temporary employment regulation file (ERTE) due to production challenges with the Kuga model. The decision to assign a new vehicle model to the factory guarantees its viability for