MARSHALL – Ford Motor Co. is shifting its strategies to allow the Dearborn-based automaker to maintain a market share in the burgeoning electric vehicle market.
Amid many recent tweaks, such as the discontinuation of a new electric pickup truck and a three-row SUV, as well as the use of more hybrid models, Ford is sticking to its ground on its plan to build a new EV battery plant in Michigan.
BlueOval Battery Park Michigan, in Marshall, Calhoun County, is currently under construction. This is one of the most expensive electric vehicle projects announced in the state.
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The initial value was $3. 5 billion before Ford announced in late 2023 that it would review its plans. This resolution is expected to reduce investment by at least $1 billion. At the same time, Michigan’s share of the Marshall Settlement amounts to $2. 2 billion in incentives.
The plant is built on the approximately 2,000-acre Marshall Area Megasite property that is now known as the Marshall Region Employment, Opportunity and Recreation (MAJOR) Campus.
Here are the latest things to know about Ford’s mega-development, following a recent plan submitted to Marshall and a public review last week through city officials and contractors:
The automaker’s footprint in Marshall encompasses just over 500 acres, according to the site plan, compared to the planned 730 acres.
The 30% relief in land ownership means Ford will now occupy about 25% of the Marshall megasite, adding land to the so-called ring road around the parcel.
Most of Ford’s structural structure is located at the bottom of its property.
The relief of the Ford portion means that the developer of the megasite, the Marshall Area Economic Development Alliance (MAEDA), maintains the northern portion of the land, bordering Michigan Avenue (the green area on the site map).
When Ford announced the allocation in February 2023, the new plant would encompass more than 950 acres, part of which would become a conservation easement on the Kalamazoo River.
The conservation parcel is located between the railroad tracks on the southernmost component of the Ford site and the Kalamazoo River. No adjustments have been made to the length of the property, city officials said.
Ford planned to build a 2. 3 million-square-foot production facility for lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries. the company to meet its target of an 8% return on its EV portfolio).
The current structure reflects a 1. 2 million-square-foot production building, a relief of about half.
However, Ford added a 600,000-square-foot packing plant west of the production building. The battery cells, once built side by side, will then be assembled into a battery pack.
More structures are underway at the assets just north of the production structure. The first two structures will be a battery dismantling structure and a garage warehouse. The plans have not been submitted to the city but are expected until after spring, experts said. Last week.
Other “process buildings” are being developed for the efficient structure of the batteries, such as a pumping station with a chimney.
The number of employees remains below the 2,500 initially planned. By the fall of 2023, that number had dropped to 1,700, a total that economic developers say still represents significant hiring for the site.
Ford had also planned to expand 1,900 parking spaces at Blue Oval Battery Park in Marshall, but the automaker has reduced that number to about 860 at the site of the new plant.
The number of new parking spaces will accommodate staff on multiple shifts, according to data accumulated in the site’s recent plan review.
Meanwhile, Ford announced 8 jobs for the Marshall plant. They include the Director of Human Resources, the Director of IT, and the Regional Program Manager.
The Marshall region is bracing for an increase in traffic coming from the plant, whether it’s trucks or worker vehicles.
Traffic lighting fixtures have been installed on Michigan Avenue and I-69 east of the megasite and are expected to begin operations through May.
Meanwhile, discussions continue between all planning teams and the Michigan Department of Transportation on how to set up the megasite’s entry and exit roads.
While there are plans to create turn lanes between Michigan Avenue and the central domain of the Ford housing domain, questions have been raised about the option of having trucks avoid the I-94 exits and use the I-69 access to Michigan Avenue.
MDOT is finalizing a study, the planning organization announced last week. More main points will be decided in long-term meetings, they added.
So far, no bus service is planned for the site, officials said in reaction to questions raised at the plan-making meeting. A plan for staff to bike to the factory is also being discussed, but there is no plan for motorcycle lanes or sidewalks on Michigan Avenue. has been finalized.
Michigan’s stake in the Marshall Settlement amounts to about $2 billion in incentives, adding a local tax break valued at about $772 million, $330 million for road improvements and a $210,000 grant for job creation that would go directly to Ford once it hires at the plant. The incentives come with an initial state eulogy in February, followed by additions and legislative actions.
In addition, MAEDA has been awarded nearly a portion of $1 million for its role in acquiring the megasite’s properties. More tax breaks are expected until the plant’s inauguration.
The degradation of the plant reduced Ford’s investment by about $1 billion. This prompted the state to announce that it would rethink how much it would spend on the project.
“Because Ford had to make some changes . . . the role of the state is also going to change,” Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said in November. “When one changes size, so does the other. “
So far, there is no conclusion that incentives will be reduced.
“The terms and situations of the incentives to assist Ford’s investment in BlueOval will be adjusted and reduced once we decide the final scope of the allocation and communicate it through Ford,” MEDC spokeswoman Otie McKinley told Bridge this week. “At this time, the main points of the scope of the assignment are still being finalized through the company. “
In addition, McKinley told Bridge, “Ford has not won any status for this project. “
The public backlash against the allocation continues: protesters gather twice a week in the city center and litigation continues.
Some protesters raise questions about the public procedure and how it is evolving.
Progression, for example, is not approved through the Marshall Planning Commission. Instead, Eric Zuzga, the city’s director of network services, said Ford’s progression is focused on commercial assets where zoning allows for plan approval through an administrative review. The assignment still wants to comply with city ordinances, he said.
The lawsuit filed through one organization, the Committee for Marshall, Not the Megasite, seeks to force a referendum on rezoning the plant site.
The megasite was formed from land in Marshall Township and Marshall Township, which entered into a land-sharing agreement to allow for large-scale development. The network organization said its calls for a public vote on the rezoning had been ignored. That case is now before the Michigan Court of Appeals.
During this time, the plant will be a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ford. The automaker licenses battery generation to Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. , Limited (CATL), a Chinese company that is the world’s largest manufacturer of vehicle batteries.
Doubts persist about CATL’s role in Ford’s projects
The automaker said it licensed CATL battery technology, propelling the Chinese company to become the world’s smartest EV battery maker. Public and political concerns persist, sparked by strained relations between the United States and China.
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