Ford Motor Co (NYSE:F) CEO Jim Farley said on Tuesday the legacy automaker aims to challenge Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) as it looks to boost its lineup of electric-vehicle offerings.
What Happened: Ford is on track to deliver over 2 million electric vehicles a year by 2026 and is working on another electric pickup, Farley said at the product launch event for the electric F-150 Lightning pickup being held at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center at its Dearborn, Michigan plant.
“We're already pushing dirt down in Blue Oval City in Tennessee for another electric pickup truck that's different from this one,” Farley said.
“We have every intention of being the number one electric pickup maker and then with the huge investments of $50 billion in EVs, battery manufacturing, and our expanded lineup —which you have not seen yet— we plan to challenge Tesla to become the top EV maker in the world.”
Ford had last year said it is expecting to produce 600,000 electric vehicles a year by the end of 2023, twice its original plan.
In comparison, Tesla delivered nearly a million cars in 2021.
The automaker on Tuesday began commercial production for the Lightning trucks. F-150 Lightning is Ford’s first big move towards electrification after it launched the Mustang Mach-E in December 2020.
See Also: Ford Reportedly Set To Announce Separation Of Electric Vehicle Unit Today
Why It Matters: Besides doubling down on electric production targets, Farley is now aiming higher with ambitions to ensure the legacy automaker dominates the electric vehicle space in the coming years.
Ford last month said it will split EVs and legacy autos into separate units as it spends billions on electric vehicles.
See Also: Ford Emphasizes Tesla-Like Strategy, Says Online Sales To Be A 'Bigger Part' Of Its Future
Price Action: Ford closed 3.2% lower at $14.7 on Tuesday.
Photo courtesy: Ford
