FORD INVESTS IN OAKVILLE MANUFACTURING SITE TO ACCOMMODATE EV PRODUCTION

By Isabelle Havasy

The C$1.8 billion investment will see the retooling and transformation of existing buildings at the Ontario site into a state-of-the-art facility dedicated to large-scale electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing. The actual 487-acre site includes three body shops, a paint facility and an assembly building, and will be complemented by a modern battery plant that will be supplied with cells and modules from the company’s BlueOval SK Battery Park in Kentucky.

The Oakville Electric Vehicle Complex will begin its makeover in the second quarter of 2024 to begin production in 2025. The new complex “will secure thousands of well-paying jobs for our hard-working Canadian auto workers and boost the competitiveness of the Canadian automotive sector. Ford’s partnership with Canada is helping to make our country a global leader in the EV supply chain for decades to come,” said François-Philippe Champagne, Canada’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development.

Ford becomes the first manufacturer to announce plans to produce EV touring vehicles in Canada to supply the North American market. According to Jim Farley, Ford’s president and CEO, “Canada and the Oakville facility will play a critical role in our Ford+ transformation. It will be a modern, super-efficient, vertically integrated site for battery and vehicle assembly.”