‘It’s a big deal for us’

Ford Motor is charting a single path as the automaker tackles the electric vehicle market, newly-installed CEO Jim Farley told CNBC’s Jim Cramer on Thursday.

Earlier today, the company announced a new all-electric van for business customers as part of its $ 11.5 billion investment in electric vehicles through 2022.

“It’s a big problem for us because what sets us apart is that we invest in utility vehicles,” he said in the “Mad Money” interview. “Ford’s bet is to electrify our commercial vehicles. We are 50% of the American market for advertisements.”

It’s part of Farley’s plan to transform the business and boost attractiveness on Wall Street after years of declining value under its predecessor. The E-Transit, scheduled for delivery in late 2021, will be marketed as an electric work van for companies like Amazon, United Parcel Service and others that provide delivery and maintenance services.

Ford wants to keep a stronghold in the utility vehicle market, which the Dearborn, Mich.-Based automaker has led for decades, as companies move away from gasoline and diesel vehicles to electric vehicles. .

Ford had a 57% share of the North American vehicle market in the third quarter, according to its earnings report.

“We sell over half a million Transits a year around the world, and we’re going to electrify it,” said Farley, whose lineage with the company dates back to when his grandfather started out. at a Michigan factory in 1916.

“The business customer is really different from the retail business. They don’t buy too much on the range,” he added. “Our electric vehicles will bring electrification to the job site so that people can use this battery in electronic transit to power the job site.”

Ford shares, however, fell during the session with the wider market on Thursday. The stock fell 1.44% to $ 8.21 per share.

Shares remain down double-digit so far this year.