Electric cars
Ford gives lost financial injection in Germany
Ford sold a small car classic for decades with the Fiesta, and the company has now switched from combustion engines to electric. But the business runs mediocre.
The car maker Ford Germany receives a strong financial injection from his parent company, but leaves a kind of protective shield from the Americans. A capital contribution of up to 4.4 billion euros is intended to significantly reduce debts, as Ford-Werke GmbH announced in Cologne. Most recently, Ford Germany’s debt amounted to 5.8 billion euros. In addition to the financial injection to debt repayment, the parent company provides several hundred million euros to boost business over the next four years.
A so-called patronage declaration from 2006, with which the US mother group stood for the debt of the German daughter, loses its validity. This gives Ford Germany something on financial independence.
“The patronage declaration was something unusual that no other Ford subsidiary had,” says Ford Germany boss Marcus Wassenberg. “The elimination of the patronage declaration is a step back to normal and by no means an expression of a lack of Ford engagement in Europe-on the contrary: the several hundred million euros for the new business plan show that the US headquarters continue to believe in success in Germany and Europe.”
Red numbers as a permanent state
Ford Germany has long been in the red, the production of the small car classic Fiesta has stopped the car manufacturer in 2023. With an investment of almost two billion euros, the Cologne plant was brought on an electrical course, the sale of two new electric models has so far been behind the expectations. At the end of 2024, the management announced a savings program with the reduction of 2900 jobs at the Cologne location within three years. According to Ford, Ford still has around 15,000 employees, almost 12,000 of them in Cologne.
Ford vice-chief John Lawler says that the group mother promotes its German subsidiary in the transformation of the business and strengthen competitiveness with a new product range. “In order to be successful in Europe in the long term, we must continue to simplify our structures, reduce costs and increase efficiency.”
Worries with the works council
Ford’s works council reacted behavior to the financial message. “Due to the measure, there is now a great unrest in the workforce,” said Ford Germany, head of the works council, Benjamin Gruschka, the dpa. The fact that the patronage declaration has fallen gave the pressure. “We now have to do well or there is the possibility of bankruptcy.” The mother’s future plans are “a big black black box”, especially since it is unclear what could happen after these four years.
dpa
Source: Stern
