In electric vehicle push, Ford's closed factories in India may be reopened: Report

Last year in September, US carmaker Ford announced that it will stop manufacturing vehicles in India due to accumulating losses of more than $2 billion. Ford had two manufacturing plants in India - one in Sanand (Gujarat) and one in Chennai (Tamil Nadu).

Now, the shuttered factories may be reborn and contribute to the nation's EV push. The Economic Times newspaper reported last week that the government in Tamil Nadu is "holding talks with Ford" to explore if its factory there can be "converted to a plant manufacturing and exporting electric vehicles".

The report also quoted Ford as saying that it was "exploring the possibility of using a plant in India as an export base."

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Another report by the same media outlet, which was published three weeks ago, noted that Tata Motors is in advanced negotiations to take over Ford India's Sanand plant in Gujarat.

Meanwhile, Ford Motor Co said on Monday (April 11) it has signed a preliminary deal to buy lithium from a Lake Resources NL facility in Argentina, marking the first time the automaker has publicly announced where it will procure the electric vehicle battery metal.

The deal is a major bet by Ford on direct lithium extraction (DLE), a relatively new breed of technology that filters the metal from brines and uses far less acreage than open-pit mines and evaporation ponds.

Ford Chief Executive Jim Farley said in February that his company was working on deals to secure supply of key raw materials for batteries such as lithium, nickel, rare earths and copper.

"This is one of several agreements we're exploring to help Ford secure raw materials to support our aggressive EV acceleration plan," said Ford spokesperson Jennifer Flake.

(With inputs from agencies)