Ford will reduce the workforce of 1,000 at its plant in Cologne to produce EVs due to slow growth in demand in spite of a 2 billion investment.

Ford Motor Co. will reduce by up to 1,000 positions at its electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing facility in Cologne, Germany, following lower than anticipated sales. The plant that manufactures the electric Explorer SUV will reduce the number of work shifts to one in January 2026.

The car manufacturer indicated that it will attempt to cushion the impact by providing voluntary resignations and purchase packages. It has been decided after a wider restructuring plan that was announced in 2024, which targeted approximately 4,000 jobs in Europe and 2,900 roles in Germany.

Ford has spent almost 2 billion dollars in redesigning the Cologne plant to manufacture EVs, hoping to increase demand for the low-emitting vehicles. Nevertheless, there has been a slow momentum of sales. The company acknowledged that the demand for EVs in Europe is much lower than the industry projections.

The experts in the industry cite the high initial investment cost, lack of charging infrastructure, and elimination of purchase subsidies in Germany as the slowing EV growth factors. Although EVs constitute 15.6 percent of the auto market in Europe this year, they have not adopted growth as expected.

Ford sold 260,000 cars during the first 7 months of 2025, which gave it a stable market share of 3.3%. Nonetheless, the EV strategy of the company is not clear at a time when the demand is waning.