Jim Farley, CEO of Ford, expressed concern about the future of the automotive industry in Europe, highlighting that electric vehicle production in the European Union is currently 3 million cars lower than pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels. He stated that this is not a transitional phase but rather a gradual liquidation of the European auto industry.
Farley noted that Europe is facing a massive influx of government-subsidized electric vehicles from China, which are structurally designed to undermine European employment and manufacturing. He emphasized that China has a production capacity surplus large enough to meet the needs of all new car buyers in Europe.
«We need to stimulate this transition, and European automakers have invested hundreds of billions to produce electric vehicles. On the other hand, we are facing a huge influx of government-subsidized electric vehicles from China, which are structurally designed to undermine European employment and manufacturing,» he said.
Farley believes the current approach to regular commercial vehicles is a tax on the backbone of the European economy. «We want to be part of its green future and plan to continue investing in it, but Europe faces a choice between two options: it can either enhance a thriving and competitive automotive industry that leads the world in green technology, or it can cling to unachievable goals while its market is taken over by imports and its companies turn into ghost towns,» he added.
He also stated that Europe needs a long-term plan to reset its operational mechanisms to avoid becoming a «museum of the 21st-century industry.» Farley stressed that the industry does not require financial support, and Ford will continue its restructuring efforts. He called for carbon reduction targets to align with market realities and for factories to receive realistic and confident future plans.
