Ford puts electric cars on hold and moves to hybrids

Ford Motor is changing its strategy for electric vehicles due to slowing sales growth. It has postponed production of at least two new models and said it will focus on hybrids.

Here's What We Know

The move by Ford and automakers such as General Motors and Mercedes-Benz, which have also postponed their plans for electric vehicles, was largely caused by the companies' difficulties in producing and selling enough cars.

Sales of green vehicles are still growing, but the pace has slowed dramatically in recent months, and companies are unable to find a way to reduce the price of batteries. So until they do, the electric car market will stagnate.

According to Sam Abuelsamid, principal analyst for transport and mobility at Guidehouse Insights, too many companies have entered the market with expensive electric cars without taking into account that the market is still quite limited.

In addition, there is the problem that buyers would rather buy a "classic" car than one with a battery because electric vehicles need to be charged and there may not be special charging stations, so they are limited to a few hundred kilometres of driving.

Ford CEO Jim Farley explained that they will continue to scale the electric vehicle business "using capital wisely". However, at the same time, the company will develop the areas of "greener" petrol and hybrid cars.

Source: The New York Times