In an effort to revive its failing EV campaign, Ford is investing in an electric charging firm. In an effort to modernize its charging infrastructure and lower the price of its electric cars, the automaker is acquiring Auto Motive Power (AMP), a firm that develops battery management software for electric charging.
Insider has received confirmation from Ford that the California-based AMP, which also develops drone charging technologies and “hyperloop” transport systems, will become part of the corporation.
“AMP is an energy management company that has earned a top reputation for leading battery management and power conversion systems and has a pool of talented engineers and technology that Ford is incorporating and vertically integrating into our EV plans,” stated a spokeswoman for Ford.
“Ford is committed to helping as many consumers as possible have better charging experiences and to expedite the adoption of EVs. This action aims to expedite that endeavor while maintaining quality.”
Ford’s AMP arrangement is the last hope
TechCrunch was the first to report on the AMP arrangement. The announcement that Ford would halt construction on several significant projects, including a new battery facility in Kentucky, and postpone $12 billion in expenditure on electric vehicles before the action.
After Ford released its third-quarter earnings, company leaders acknowledged that, despite the company’s continued commitment to battery-powered cars, demand had lagged behind projections.
Executive chair Bill Ford cautioned last month in an interview with The New York Times that consumers won’t pay a high price for electric cars and that costs must drop before the auto industry can completely adopt EVs. In response to the declining market for electric vehicles, other automakers have adopted a similarly cautious stance in recent months, with some dropping their ambitious goals.
GM declared that it will no longer strive to produce 100,000 electric vehicles by the second part of 2023. Harald Wilhelm, the CFO of Mercedes-Benz, cautioned analysts that the existing market was unsustainable for many automakers and described the EV industry as a “pretty brutal space.”
Nonetheless, Tesla continues to defy expectations that growing competition will undermine its dominance as the largest EV manufacturer in the Western world. Ford and General Motors are among the competitors that Elon Musk’s automaker has convinced to use its charging network in the United States. Subaru joined the club on Wednesday, stating that it will start using Tesla’s North American Charging Standard for all-electric vehicles in 2025.
