

Microvast rebutted that claim by saying the Chinese government and Communist Party don’t have any ownership in the company and don’t control or influence its operations.

The department didn’t offer a reason for the decision, which came after some congressional Republicans argued the company, Texas-based Microvast, has improper ties to China. The loan also follows the Department of Energy’s recent decision to abruptly reject a $200 million loan for a proposed Kentucky electric vehicle battery facility. “Not only is the federal government not using its power to turn the tide – they’re actively funding the race to the bottom with billions in public money.” “We have been absolutely clear that the switch to electric engine jobs, battery production and other EV manufacturing cannot become a race to the bottom,” Fain said in a news release about the Ford battery project loan. The company has said it’s up to workers to decide. Many in the industry expect strikes against one or more of the companies as the union tries to get general and cost-of-living pay raises and eliminate tiers of workers who are paid different wages, sometimes for doing the same work.Īt the projects in Tennessee and Kentucky, Ford has stopped short of offering explicit support for union membership at its new plants. Newly elected UAW President Shawn Fain has criticized the companies, saying they make billions without fairly compensating workers. The news of the loan comes about three weeks before the UAW is scheduled to open contract talks with Ford, Stellantis and General Motors. The Department of Energy said the federal loan helps support several of Biden’s clean energy goals, including priorities for domestic clean energy and transportation technology manufacturing and a push for electric vehicles to make up at least half of all new cars bought in the U.S. Kentucky’s state incentives package for the project includes a $250 million loan. Ford and its battery partner have invested $5.8 billion in the Kentucky project. The venture will employ 5,000 people to produce batteries for future Ford and Lincoln electric vehicles. Production is also scheduled to start in 2025 at the two battery manufacturing plants being built in Glendale, Kentucky.

The agreement included $500 million in capital grant funds. The 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning caught our attention for two reasons: it is an electric full-size pickup, and its set to wear a starting price of 41,669 when it goes on sale in May 2022. Tennessee lawmakers have committed to spending nearly $900 million on state incentives, infrastructure upgrades and more as part of a sweeping plan with Ford. Ford plans to start production by 2025.īefore landing the Ford project, Tennessee had invested more than $174 million in the unused megasite outside of Memphis where the plants are being built. The department’s loan office said it “works with all borrowers to create good-paying jobs with strong labor standards during construction, operations, and throughout the life of the loan and to adhere to a strong Community Benefits Plan.”įord has said its assembly plant and the battery plant in rural Stanton, Tennessee, will employ about 6,000 people with an investment of roughly $5.6 billion. through the Department of Energy to create 7,500 low-road jobs with no consideration for wages, working conditions, union rights or retirement security.” However, the announcement drew sharp criticism from the United Auto Workers union, which called it “a massive $9.2 billion giveaway loan to Ford Motor Co. “BlueOval SK will use this loan to its fullest as we create 7,500 good American jobs, strengthen critical domestic supply chains, and produce high-quality batteries for future Ford and Lincoln electric vehicles here in Tennessee and Kentucky.” This is not the interior of a working vehicle, as it is covered in the sort of soft-touch leathers and pliable plastics that are usually found on a high-end SUV.“We’re thrilled the Department of Energy joins BlueOval SK in our vision to electrify the future of mobility,” Robert Rhee, BlueOval SK’s CEO, said in a statement to media outlets.

This thing has a glorious cabin, covered in the sort of materials that will have hill farmers laughing uproariously. Take any jokes you might have written, heard or even thought about when it comes to American cars and the quality of their interiors and discard them. Yes, there are parking sensors, but the lack of visibility of low items is discombobulating. The bits you can’t see will almost certainly be covered by the many cameras around the outside, and we certainly had to flick them on to be absolutely sure we weren’t going to drive over something. However, you are up so high, and the bonnet is so far up that you will struggle to see smaller things lower down, such as obstacles out the front when you’re parking.
FORD LIGHTNING 2022 ELECTRIC WINDOWS
Visibility is generally decent, in that the windows are big and you can see lots out at your own level.
