"Cast your mind back to 2021. Electric vehicles were hot stuff, buoyed by Tesla's increasingly stratospheric valuation and a general optimism fueled by what would turn out to be the most significant climate-focused spending package in US history. For some time, automakers had been promising an all-electric future, and they started laying the groundwork to make that happen, partnering with battery suppliers and the like."
"The news has not exactly shocked industry-watchers. Ford started to throttle back on the EV hype in 2024, throwing out not one but two EV strategies by that August. Disappointing F-150 Lightning sales saw Ford postpone a fully electric replacement (which is supposed to be built in Tennessee) in favor of a smaller midsize electric truck- supposedly much cheaper to build -due in 2027."
"As for the two plants, a Ford subsidiary will assume full ownership of Blue Oval City in Kentucky, with SK On taking full ownership of the plant in Tennessee. According to Reuters, SK On decided to end the partnership due to the declining prospects of EV sales in the US. Instead, it intends to focus the Tennessee plant's output on the energy storage market."
In 2021 EV momentum spurred large investments and partnerships to build battery capacity, exemplified by Ford's BlueOvalSK joint venture: an $11.4 billion plan for two plants promising 11,000 jobs and 60 GWh annual output. By 2024–2025 shifting policy and weak EV demand prompted automakers to scale back electric plans. Ford reduced its EV ambitions and postponed a fully electric F-150 replacement after disappointing Lightning sales. The BlueOvalSK joint venture is ending. A Ford subsidiary will take full ownership of the Kentucky site while SK On will assume the Tennessee plant and pivot it toward energy storage output.
Read at Ars Technica
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