Cost Savings And Slow EV Demand Could Be To Blame
Ford plans to eliminate up to 1,000 jobs at its Cologne, Germany, plant, reports German news agency DPA. The historic manufacturing site was recently converted into an all-EV factory, and the report cites slowing EV demand in Europe as a reason for the cuts. But Ford has also been planning on whittling down jobs as part of a cost-saving plan initiated in 2024.
The automaker plans to move from a two-shift schedule to a single shift schedule at the beginning of 2026, according to the report, adding that the job cuts resulting from that change come on top of a planned 2,900 jobs to be cut across administration, development, and other departments at the Cologne site.
Historic Site Saw EV Revamp
Ford
Ford is currently in discussions with labor leaders regarding additional job cuts, according to the report. The automaker is reportedly hoping to achieve these reductions through voluntary departures that will include severance packages and partial retirement benefits for the affected employees who agree to leave voluntarily.
Ford has a long association with Cologne. The automaker has been manufacturing cars there since 1930, and the city is also home to its German division. The establishment of a presence in Cologne was one of Ford’s first major forays outside the United States, and an important step toward the global presence Ford maintains to this day.
In 2023, Ford implemented a $2 billion transformation of the site into the Cologne Electric Vehicle Center. Production restarted in 2024 with the electric Ford Explorer, a Europe-only model based on the Volkswagen Group MEB platform that shares only a name with the SUV Americans know. Production of the Capri was added later in the year.
Long-Term EV Commitment Remains
Ford
It’s not a good time for Ford’s German workers. In addition to job cuts at Cologne, the automaker plans to close its other German plant—located in the town of Saarlouis—entirely by November. That plant currently builds the gasoline Ford Focus, which is due to be discontinued with no planned replacement, although a recent report suggested a Focus-badged SUV was being considered.
Like other automakers, Ford is trying to guess the speed at which EV adoption will increase ahead of a planned cutoff of sales of new internal-combustion cars in Europe in 2035. So while it may be reducing production in Cologne, it remains committed to EVs. If that Focus SUV happens, it will reportedly have an all-electric powertrain option. And in the U.S., Ford is developing a new platform for a family of more-affordable electric vehicles.
