Ford Begins E-Transit Deliveries, Says Working On Ways To Increase Production And Meet 'Strong' Demand

Ford Motor Co F said on Tuesday it has begun deliveries for E-Transit, the electric version of its top-selling cargo vans, from the Kansas City Assembly Plant and it is working on increasing production.

What Happened: The Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker said the electric variant of the E-Transit has secured more than 10,000 orders.

“Demand is strong, with more than 300 customers placing orders for 10,000-plus E-Transit vans,” Ford said, adding retail giant Walmart Inc WMT is among those who have placed orders for the electric cargo vans. 

The e-Transit is built at Kansas City Assembly Plant — the legacy automaker’s first U.S. plant to assemble both batteries and all-electric vehicles in-house.

See Also: Ford Begins Production For E-Transit, Deliveries To Begin In Coming Weeks

Why It Matters: The E-Transit is key to Ford’s strategy to gain market share in the commercial van category. It is also among the first three electric vehicle models from the legacy auto player’s lineup including the Mustang Mach-E and the F-150 Lightning.

Mustang Mach-E began selling in Dec 2020 and the F-150 Lightning deliveries are expected to begin at the end of the first quarter.

E-Transit is part of Ford’s focus as it invests more than $30 billion towards electrification through 2025. The automaker aims to ramp up its EV capacity to 600,000 units a year by the end of 2023, including 200,000-plus Mustang Mach-E SUVs and 150,000 F-150 Lightning trucks.

Price Action: Ford shares closed 0.95% lower at $17.7 a share on Tuesday. The stock is down 18% year-to-date.

Photo: Courtesy of Ford