DEARBORN, Mich. (Michigan News Source) — Ford Motor Co. announced a shift in its manufacturing strategy, revealing plans to build F-Series Super Duty trucks at its Oakville Assembly Complex in Ontario starting in 2026. The move includes a $3 billion investment to add initial capacity for 100,000 trucks annually at the plant, which recently ceased production of the Ford Edge crossover. According to Ford Media, this decision is part of their strategy to meet the demand from Ford’s Pro commercial business and to optimize production capacity across North America.
Currently, Ford’s Kentucky Truck and Ohio Assembly plants are running at full capacity, having produced 200,000 vehicles in the first half of the year. The addition of the Oakville plant as a third North American production site will help alleviate pressure on these plants.
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“Super Duty is a vital tool for businesses and people around the world,” Ford president and CEO Jim Farley said in a statement. “This move benefits our customers and supercharges our Ford Pro commercial business.”
The Oakville expansion will secure approximately 1,800 jobs at the plant and create about 150 new positions at the Windsor Engine Complex. Additionally, it will generate 70 jobs and increase overtime at three U.S. component plants: Sharonville Transmission in Ohio, and Rawsonville Components and Sterling Axle in Michigan.
Ford’s decision also involves shifting the planned production of a three-row electric utility vehicle, originally slated for Oakville, to an undisclosed location. Meanwhile, the Oakville plant will focus on producing diesel and gas-powered Super Duty trucks, with plans to support electrified models later in the decade.
“It’s a good product to put into that plant to keep it alive,” Sam Fiorani, vice president of global vehicle forecasting at AutoForecast Solutions LLC, told The Detroit News. “Giving Ford a little more profitable and highly demanded trucks will help their bottom line as the company transitions to EVs.”
Unifor, the union representing autoworkers at Ford, General Motors and Stellantis in Canada in Canada, played a key role in negotiations to ensure the resumption of production at Oakville. Specifically, the union had expressed concerns over the initial delay in EV production, which would have resulted in extended layoffs for its members.
“This new retooling plan for the Oakville plant addresses our union’s concerns with Ford Motor Company’s decision to delay new vehicle production for a period that was too long, too disruptive, and too harmful to accept,” Unifor National President Lana Payne said, according to the Detroit Free Press.
The revised plan, which includes an additional $500 million investment on top of the previously committed $1.8 billion, ensures that workers can return to their jobs sooner and secures employment well into the future.
Despite a rise in U.S. EV and hybrid sales in the first half of 2024, Ford anticipates a $5 billion loss in its Model e EV division this year, as reported by The Detroit News.
This projected deficit is part of the rationale behind a $12 billion adjustment in Ford’s EV investments, including changes to the planned production of the three-row electric SUV.
Ford executives have shared with The Detroit News that they are working on developing more affordable EVs, aiming for starting prices between $25,000 and $30,000.
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