Ford CEO Jim Farley has said the automaker was "absolutely" interested in following Tesla and General Motors into producing its own batteries for electric vehicles.
CNBC said those comments were a reversal from former CEO Jim Hackett who told investors in July Ford saw "no advantage" in producing EV batteries.
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Farley reportedly said Ford was evaluating producing EV batteries but had made no final plans.
Such production could be a way to offset expected factory job losses as EVs require fewer workers to produce.
"Absolutely, we're discussing it as a team," Farley said during a Reuters automotive conference, according to CNBC. "We think that it's a natural time now because our volume is really growing."
According to the report, Farley said Ford was finding there was not a lot of flexibility to increase capacity from third party suppliers for batteries. He said now was the time to discuss battery production as the automaker grew its EV portfolio ahead of a next generation of vehicles coming around 2025.
"There's a lot of other reasons beyond cost to make a move," Farley reportedly said. "It's something we're discussing inside the company and it's the right time to discuss it."
