Ford announced on Monday new plans to spend £230 million ($315 million) renovating a factory in Northwest England for electric vehicle component production.
The new electric vehicle facility will be created at the vehicle transmission site in Halewood, Merseyside in England, transforming it into an electric power unit production plant, according to CNBC.
“This is an important step, marking Ford’s first in-house investment in all-electric vehicle component manufacturing in Europe,” said Stuart Rowley, president of Ford Europe, in a statement, according to CNBC. “It strengthens further our ability to deliver 100% of Ford passenger vehicles in Europe being all-electric and two-thirds of our commercial vehicle sales being all-electric or plug-in hybrid by 2030."
With a substantial amount of money going into the renovation process, the company's financial investment move is worth approximately £30 million and had the support and backing of the U.K. government, according to CNBC. In 2020, the U.K. government created a £500 million pool aimed at persuading electric vehicle manufacturers and battery makers to expand their operations in the United Kingdom, as the country wants to end the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030.
Ford has set its goal to begin operating electric power units at the new U.K. location by mid-2024, with a target of producing 250,000 at the site each year, according to CNBC.