Ford Said to Add Jobs at Plant for Electric Vehicles

(Bloomberg) -- Ford Motor Co., working to electrify a quarter of its model lineup, is adding about 40 jobs to a factory in Michigan as part of a plan to introduce four such models by 2012, said two people familiar with the plan.

Mark Fields, the automaker’s president of the Americas, plans to announce the jobs and the next stage of Ford’s electric-vehicle strategy in a ceremony May 24 at an engine factory in Ypsilanti, Michigan, said the people, who asked to not be identified disclosing details prior to the announcement. Ford has cut almost half of its North American jobs since 2006.

Ford will begin selling two electric vehicles and two new hybrids by 2012 and expects such models to be 10 percent to 25 percent of its worldwide fleet in a decade, the Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker has said. Automakers are developing models powered all or in part by electricity to meet U.S. government fuel-economy standards.

“Ford has a good pedigree in electric vehicles,” said Michael Robinet, an auto-industry analyst with CSM Worldwide in Northville, Michigan. “Ford’s been at the forefront of layering in this new technology. It bodes well for their future.”

Also at the ceremony will be Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, a Democrat, and Bob King, nominated as the next president of the United Auto Workers union, Ford said in a media advisory.

“All I know is it’s another good-news event,” Liz Boyd, a spokeswoman for Granholm, said in an e-mail.

John Stoll, a Ford spokesman, declined to comment.

Hybrid Models

Ford now sells four hybrid models and plans to introduce a gasoline-electric version of its Lincoln MKZ sedan, the brand’s best-selling model, this year. It also is rolling out in the U.S. electric versions of the Transit Connect van this year and Focus small car in 2011. The electric models will come out 6 to 12 months later in Europe, Ford said.

U.S. rules require an average companywide fuel economy rating of 35.5 miles per gallon in 2016, up from 25 mpg now.

Ford has eliminated 47 percent of its North American workforce since 2006, as it cut costs and overhauled its model lineup to become less dependent on sport-utility vehicles and pickups. The automaker ended three years of losses to post a $2.7 billion net profit last year as the U.S. auto market fell to its lowest level in 27 years.

The automaker’s U.S. sales are up 33 percent this year on models such as the Fusion hybrid.