On May 22, Ford presented its case to Wall Street at an investor event by outlining its plan to build millions of EVs while expanding its traditional operations.
Ford’s CEO, Jim Farley, started the day by discussing the company’s growth plans for its gas-powered fleet and electric business units.
The automaker claimed it’s maintaining its 2023 guidance of between $9 and $11 billion in adjusted EBIT and roughly $6 billion in adjusted free cash flow. Ford also revealed a series of new deals for the supply of lithium products in support of its plan to ramp up EV production drastically.
Growth plans
Ford said its EV operation’s loss widened to $722 million for the first quarter from $380 million a year earlier. The company’s ICE division, Ford Blue, earned $2.6 billion, and the automaker’s fleet operations reported $1.4 billion in earnings.
Kumar Galhotra, president of operations, explained that “Demand continues to outstrip capacity for our key [internal combustion] vehicles,” Galhotra said. “In the next 10 months, Ford Blue will increase its capacity by over 160,000 units.”
Doug Field, chief advanced product development and technology officer, suggests the company’s next generation of EVs, which are scheduled to go into production in 2025, will need to be more efficient.
For example, the automaker may need to utilize the company’s BlueCruise hands-free technology, which will be a push toward software and subscription revenue models.
“As we develop our next-generation platforms,” Field stated, “We aim to deliver BlueCruise to as many customers as possible.” He adds, “Everything changes when you can take your eyes off the road.”
