Ford says Michigan battery plant right move despite tariffs, political headwinds

Ford's battery plant in Marshall, Mich., is slated to open in 2026. MARSHALL, Mich. — Despite political headwinds, pushback from some local residents and now costly tariffs on equipment that has yet to reach U.S. shores, Ford Motor Co. executives say they still think building a $3 billion battery plant here was the right move for the automaker.

Lisa Drake, Ford’s vice president of technology platform programs and electric vehicle systems, told reporters here that the company has taken a substantial hit from import tariffs on equipment that will be coming to the U.S. from China. The 2 million-square-foot plant is slated to open in 2026 and produce lithium iron phosphate batteries for future EVs using some intellectual property from China-based Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL). But Drake said the added costs are bearable in the long run.

“Even with the tariffs, this is still the right thing to do versus the choice of importing this technology into the U.S.,” Drake said. “I’d still rather have the equipment here. I don’t really want to pay a tariff, but right now that’s the situation we’re in.” Future Product Ford future product Find our what powertrains, redesigns and freshenings are planned for the next four years. View the list Brand future product timelines The tariffs are the latest headwind for the plant 100 miles west of Detroit. Ford already scaled down the project from a larger planned investment in response to slowing EV adoption.

Executive Chair Bill Ford said in May that the site was in peril if production tax credits from the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act were eliminated in a federal budget bill making its way through congress. Drake said the tax credits essentially became a lifeline to the site after EV adoption rates slowed and that the automaker believes it’s unfair to take away something that was promised when the project began. “Because our timeline for investment is so long, when these rules change so fast, they’re very material for us,” Drake said. “We don’t want to back off on this facility. If anything we want to go faster.” Sign up for the quarterly Automotive News U.S.

Sales report to get data and news sent to your inbox as soon as it’s compiled. Roughly 1,800 workers are currently building the site, and Ford Motor eventually expects to employ 1,700 people there building batteries. CATL will train the workers initially, but the equipment and work force will belong to Ford. Drake said the size of the workforce could change depending on the tax credits. “It would be a shame to build these facilities and all of a sudden you have to scale back on the most important part of it, which is people,” Drake said.

“There are 1,700 jobs that don’t come around that often.” Story Continues The site is under fire from politicians who oppose Ford’s work with a Chinese battery company. The site also is under fire from politicians who oppose Ford’s work with a Chinese battery company. CATL will train workers on battery cell manufacturing and how to use the equipment, although Ford will control the design and assembly of the packs that house the finished cells. Ford says LFP batteries charge faster, last longer and cost less than other types to make. The company has said it will launch a midsize EV pickup in 2027 on a new low-cost platform, although it has not yet confirmed that cells from the Marshall plant will be used in that model.

Drake argued that licensing technology from CATL was the only viable option to quickly make the batteries at scale. “It probably would have taken us a decade to catch up and have LFP technology on our own, with our own R&D,” she said. “Hundreds of millions [of dollars], time. If Ford has capital, we want to spend our investment creating the manufacturing jobs here.” Send us a letter to the editor Have an opinion about this story? Tell us about it and we may publish it in print. Click here to submit a letter to the editor.

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