Ford confirms that the Valencian factory will manufacture a new multi-energy passenger vehicle, which will add to its product line in Europe. The company assures that given the changes occurring in the industry, there is the opportunity to add a new product to the Almussafes factory, although it clarifies that this decision, in line with its usual processes, will be subject to the approval of the program. As confirmed by UGT-PV, on April 10 there will be a new meeting in Cologne, from which more details will be known.
The decision made known this Thursday is linked to the new line developed by the company, which this week launched the new electric Explorer produced in Cologne and the beginning of “a new era”, as the firm defines, for its business in Europe. With this first electric passenger vehicle manufactured in Europe, which completes a new range of combustion, hybrid and electric passenger and commercial vehicles, Ford ensures that it seeks to “surprise and delight its customers” in Europe. “By 2035, we plan for our entire range of commercial and passenger vehicles in Europe to be 100% electric, in accordance with European regulation,” the company explains to La Vanguardia.
Ford’s confirmation this Thursday comes after the meeting held yesterday between UGT-PV, the majority union at the Ford Valencia plant, with the company’s global management in Dunton (England) and from which, although in dribs and drabs, the They are learning more and more details.
The joint statement from the European committee of the plant that was expected for this Thursday, after the progress made yesterday, states that the meeting with Jim Farley, the CEO of Ford, and other members of the global and European steering committee, identifies opportunities and One of the steps is the next assignment of a new vehicle, yet to be revealed, for the Valencian factory.
For the UGT-PV union, participant in the talks and majority in the plant and in the Ford Valencia works council, the now known decision guarantees the continuity of Almussafes. “There will be solutions for Almussafes, although logically it will not be a matter of a few days,” the union points out.
They add that the assignment will maintain the workload in Almussafes, a latent concern due to the surplus of labor that could be produced as vehicle production has been reduced. In fact, today the last ERTE in force at the plant is extended for three more weeks, when initially it would only be until March 28.
For UGT-PV, the decision – which they claim is a “clear commitment” from its global CEO – confirms the company’s commitment to Valencia and they attribute it to the Agreement for Electrification, of which they are promoters. “We can affirm that the main thing is resolved, which does not mean that everything is resolved,” says UGT-PV.
Consell and the central government have also celebrated the decision. The president of the Generalitat Valenciana, Carlos Mazón, has described as “exceptional and magnificent” the commitment of the global management of Ford Motor Company to assign the production of a new model to the Almussafes factory, a decision that “values ??a key industry for our land”, assured the head of the Consell. The highest representative of the Valencian Executive has indicated that “work has been done for a long time with discretion and efficiency” and has valued this announcement as a “success” in which Ford management, workers and the current and previous Administration were involved.
The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, has shared a message on “X” in which he calls the news “magnificent” both for Spain and for Ford workers. “The company’s decision to produce electric vehicles guarantees the viability of the Almufasses plant for the coming years,” says Sánchez, who has valued the collaboration between administrations: “The long-term work of this Government together with the communities self-employment pays off,” he noted.
Previously, the Secretary of State for Industry, the former Valencian councilor Rebeca Torró, had pointed out that the news is “the result of the joint work that has been developed” and that it “multiplies the opportunities for the Almussafes plant, as well as for the cluster of the automotive, in which 25,000 people work, and for the entire auxiliary industry in the Valencian Community and in Spain as a whole”.
