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Report: Ford May Shutter Two Factories in Russia
Ford Motor Co. tells Reuters it will decide this spring whether to shut down two assembly plants in Russia as part of its global restructuring.
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Ford Motor Co. tells Reuters it will decide this spring whether to shut down two assembly plants in Russia as part of its global restructuring.
The targeted factories are in Leningrad (Focus and Mondeo sedans) and Tatarstan (Fiesta superminis and EcoSport small SUVs), sources tell Reuters.
The sources say Ford also may stop local production of its Kuga small crossover and Explorer midsize SUV at a second factory in Tatarstan, leaving only Transit commercial van operations there.
Ford and partner OSJC Sollers currently have capacity to build 360,000 vehicles per year in Russia. But sales have lagged in the overall market, and demand is well below capacity.
Last year, Ford sales in the country rose 6% to 53,200 cars and light commercial vehicles in a market that expanded 13% overall, according to the Moscow-based Assn. of European Businesses. Ford sales in January plummeted 44% to 1,700 units.
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