Ford’s CEO looking at potentially splitting EV and ICE businesses

Recent years have seen a surge in electric vehicle sales. You don’t have to be a genius to know that.

And for the most part, Tesla has been the dominant force in the all-electric world. They constantly lead world sales figures and continue to expand globally.

Tesla’ success has spurred on rival challenges, namely from their American competitors. Ford and GM have both said they aim to soon topple Tesla in the EV market share.

Now, Ford is evaluating their next step to bridge the gap between themselves and Elon Musk. Bloomberg reports Ford is considering separating its electric fleet from its internal-combustion business.

Ford’s CEO Jim Farley even suggested potentially spinning off one or the other. The motivation behind it all is to give Ford Tesla-like market value.

“Running a successful ICE business and a successful EV business are not the same,” Farley said. “I’m really excited about the company’s commitment to operate the businesses as they should be.” 

It’s hard to fathom Ford doing such a thing. But Bloomberg analysts say the only way Ford can level or surpass Tesla’s market dominance is to remove its legacy model. Essentially, that means spinning off its EV sector.

Ford did respond to the suggestion of an EV spin off, refuting any claims.

“We have no plans to spin off our battery electric-vehicle business or our traditional ICE business,” the company said.

A split between ICE and EV operations would also be a significant challenge. Ford has already committed to spending between US$10 and $20 billion this decade converting existing factories to build plug-in hybrids.

Still, Farley didn’t reject the possibility when further quizzed on the subject. 

“We’re not seeking half measures,” he said. “We’re done with incremental change. We have a clear plan, a bias for action and a whatever-it-takes mindset.

“This is a culture change at Ford. This is part of the rhythm change.”