Ford will write down £14.5 billion as it cuts back production of EVs in what boss Jim Farley has described as a “customer-driven shift”.
The decision – which will mainly affect the US and other non-European markets – is hooked on a drop in driver demand for EVs.
This is especially true in Ford's US home market, where EV incentives are being scrapped and emission mandates watered down by president Donald Trump.
The biggest chunk (£4.5bn) of the write-down will come from cancelling plans for a new battery factory in Kentucky, which it was due to build with South Korea’s SK Group.
“This is a customer-driven shift to create a stronger, more resilient and more profitable Ford,” said Farley. “The operating reality has changed, and we are redeploying capital into higher-return growth opportunities.”
In an statement, Ford added that the business case for leaning heavily into EVs had "eroded".
It has also binned the US-sold F-150 Lightning pick-up truck: the electric variant of one of its best sellers will now be redesigned as a hybrid.
Ford will now instead look at more value-focused EVs, such as those due to be built on its new Universal Electric Vehicle Platform, which was unveiled earlier this year.
Andrew Frick, head of Ford’s EV unit, explained: “Rather than spending billions more on large EVs that now have no path to profitability, we are allocating that money into higher-returning areas."
The move isn't expected to impact Ford's EV plans in Europe. Last week it announced a new tie-up with Renault to build a new range of smaller, value-focused EVs that will sit alongside the Volkswagen-based Capri and Explorer.
The first new EV, a Ford Fiesta successor, is due in early 2028. It will be related to and built alongside the Renault 5 at the ElectriCity complex in Douai, France. The second EV is expected to be a small crossover based on the Renault 4.
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