Ford Cuts Capri, Explorer EV Output Due To 'Significantly Lower Than Expected Demand' After Pausing F-150 Lightning Production

Ford Motor Co F is reportedly slowing production of the electric Capri and Explorer at the company’s Cologne factory in Germany owing to slowing EV demand.

What Happened: As a result of the production slowdown, Ford employees will work one week and take off in the next until Christmas vacation, according to a report by Motor1.

Both the Explorer EV and the Capril EV commenced production in Germany earlier this year.

“The significantly lower than expected demand for electric vehicles, specifically in Germany, requires a temporary adjustment of production volumes at the Cologne Electric Vehicle Centre,” a Ford spokesperson told a German news outlet Deutsche Presse-Agentur.

According to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA), Ford had just 236,081 new car registrations in the EU in the nine months through the end of September, marking a drop of about 15% from the corresponding period last year. In September alone, new Ford car registrations fell by nearly 10% in the EU.

Ford did not immediately respond to Benzinga’s request for comment on the report.

Why It Matters: Earlier this month, Ford also said that it would pause the production of its F-150 Lightning pickup truck for six weeks through the end of the year at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Plant in Michigan.

“We continue to adjust production for an optimal mix of sales growth and profitability," a company spokesperson told Benzinga about the decision.

For the third quarter, Ford’s EV segment called “Model e” reported an EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) loss of $1.2 billion after cost improvements were offset by industrywide pricing pressure, taking its loss this year through the end of September to $3.7 billion. The company now expects a full-year EBIT loss of $5 billion from the segment.

Price Action: Ford stock was up 0.3% in premarket trading on Thursday at $11.13. Year-to-date, the automaker’s shares are down 8.7%, according to Benzinga Pro data.

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Photo courtesy: Ford