When the truck that once stole the spotlight in the EV world comes to a stop, the entire industry takes notice. The pause in production of the Ford F‑150 Lightning, caused by disruptions in the aluminium supply chain, highlights a crucial point, even when the most celebrated EVs are not shielded from the risks that come from upstream material shortages.
A fire denting Ford’s plan
In a surprising turn of events for the automotive supply chain, a huge fire at Novelis’s North American aluminium sheet plant has put Ford’s production of its popular F‑150 in jeopardy. The fire at the Scriba facility in New York, which provides essential aluminium body panels, is expected to keep a large part of the plant shut down until early 2026. This could lead to significant ripple effects throughout Ford’s manufacturing network.
Shortage of aluminium, resulting in to halt in production
The Ford F-150 Lightning, which is the best-selling electric pickup in the country, is currently hitting the brakes on production. This pause comes as Ford shifts its attention to its popular gas-powered models.
The decision follows a fire at a crucial supplier's aluminium plant, leading Ford to focus on ramping up production of its traditional F-150 and Super Duty trucks due to limited material availability. As a result, the all-electric F-150 Lightning will remain on hold until early next year, showcasing the automaker's strategic pivot in light of ongoing supply chain challenges.
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Ford has made the tough decision to pause production of the F-150 Lightning for the time being. Instead, it is now shifting its limited aluminium supply to focus on the internal-combustion and hybrid versions of the F-Series. These models, which use less aluminium and are in higher demand at dealerships, have now taken priority for the automaker as it navigates ongoing material shortages.
Ford spokesperson Sam Schembari stated, "F-150 Lightning is the best-selling electric pickup truck in the US, despite new competition from CyberTruck, Chevy, GMC, Hummer and Rivian and delivered record sales in Q3. Right now, we’re focused on producing F-150 ICE and Hybrid as we recover from the fire at Novelis. We have good inventories of the F-150 Lightning and will bring Rouge Electric Vehicle Center (REVC) back up at the right time, but don’t have an exact date at this time."
A reflection on the profit forecast
The recent fire at Novelis’s aluminium facility has hit Ford Motor Company hard, forcing the automaker to lower its annual profit forecast. Ford now expects its full-year earnings before interest and taxes to be between USD 6.0 billion and USD 6.5 billion, down from the previous estimate of USD 6.5 billion to USD 7.5 billion. The company believes that the supply disruptions and production delays could lead to an extra USD 1.5 billion to USD 2 billion in costs. With aluminium supply issues affecting operations, especially for the F-Series lineup, Ford’s revised outlook highlights how sensitive automotive profitability is to disruptions in materials and suppliers.
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Since September 16, the automotive company has been facing some serious production hurdles after a fire at its main aluminium supplier, Novelis, located in Oswego, New York. This unfortunate incident led to a halt in the company’s hot mill operations. With the facility not expected to get back to work until December, Ford is bracing for potential losses that could reach up to USD 2 billion.
To lessen the blow, the automaker plans to boost production of its traditional F-150 models early next year. It is temporarily shifting employees from the Rouge Electric Vehicle Centre, where the F-150 Lightning is made, to its Dearborn plant to keep manufacturing running smoothly.
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The journey of the F-150 Lightning in production has been anything but smooth since it hit the market. Almost a year ago, Ford had to pause the manufacturing of this electric pickup because demand dipped and dealerships were left with too much inventory. Then, earlier in 2023, it hit another snag when operations were briefly stopped again due to a battery issue, which just added to the list of hurdles the company has been trying to overcome to keep production steady for its flagship electric vehicle.
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