Lisa Drake, the Chief Operating Officer of Ford Motor Co., shared that the company will, for the first time, spend more funds on electric vehicles than it will on combustion engine vehicles in 2023.
Listen to your favorite News/Talk station now on Audacy.
Drake spoke at an event hosted by the bank Barclays. During the event, Drake mentioned the 2023 timeline for Ford and how the automaker will be making significant investments in electric vehicles.
Related
"In 2023 ... we'll spend more on EVs than we will on ICE," Drake said.
Drake went on to share the company's feelings about the electric vehicles it currently is marketing.
"We've been over the moon about the success of Mach-E, and the F-150 Lightning, by bringing in over 70% new customers to the Ford brand," she said. "What that allows us to do is, now we have an opportunity not only to lead on our ICE business, but also in the EV space with F-150. So our aspirations are high."
Electric vehicles have become more popular throughout the back half of the last decade, with companies like Tesla making a big splash in the auto industry.
Related
The electric cars have become so popular that the Tesla Model 3 ranked 16 for America's best-selling car models last year at 206,500. It was the only fully electric vehicle on the list.
This number is also significant in the growth of electric cars, being that in 2017 Tesla only sold 1,667 Model 3s.
In a statement from earlier this year, Ford shared that it would increase its investments in electrification to $30 billion through 2025.
Now, the company is working on fielding its first wave of electric vehicles. Late last year, the first all-electric vehicle from the company was announced in the Mustang Mach-E SUV.
Related
The launch for the electric version of the van is slated for later this year, and next year it is set to launch the battery-electric version of Ford's long-running, best-selling vehicle in the U.S., the F-150 pickup truck.
This follows suit with Ford's plan to electrify their most popular vehicles. It will also help the company follow a key component of its Ford+ growth plan, which emphasizes digital connectivity and commercial vehicles.
For now, the company will continue with its best-selling combustion engine vehicles, but they will only be the main focus of the company for a short time longer.