Ford Motor said on Thursday it is prioritizing production of its gas-powered and hybrid F-Series trucks as it works to recover from financial and operational setbacks caused by a fire at an aluminum supplier’s plant in New York. Production of the all-electric F-150 Lightning remains on hold at the company’s Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn, Michigan.
The decision follows a September 16 fire at Novelis’ aluminum plant in Oswego, which severely damaged its hot mill and disrupted Ford’s supply chain. Novelis expects the facility to resume full operations by December 2025. The setback has forced Ford to focus on models that generate higher margins and rely less on aluminum.
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“We have good inventories of the F-150 Lightning and will bring Rouge Electric Vehicle Center (REVC) back up at the right time, but don’t have an exact date at this time,” said Ford spokesperson Ian Thibodeau.
While Ford has promoted growing demand for its all-electric pickup, the F-150 Lightning continues to account for a small share of total sales. The automaker sold 10,005 units in the third quarter, a 39.7% year-on-year increase, compared with 207,732 F-Series trucks sold overall. Year-to-date, Ford has delivered 23,034 Lightning pickups, roughly 1% higher than during the same period in 2024.
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The fire’s impact is expected to weigh heavily on Ford’s earnings, with the automaker forecasting up to $2 billion in fourth-quarter losses linked to the disruption. Additional tariff-related costs of about $1 billion have also prompted the company to lower its full-year profit outlook for 2025 to $6 billion from $6.5 billion.
To offset the losses, Ford plans to increase F-Series production by more than 50,000 trucks in 2026 by adding a third shift at its Dearborn Truck Plant. The move is expected to create about 1,000 new jobs, with all hourly employees from the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center to be reassigned to the new shift.
