Ford asks suppliers to cut EV costs in an all-win-or-lose push for profitability
Ford is putting “everything on the table” to keep up with Tesla and fast-rising Chinese EV makers like BYD. In a new memo, Ford asked suppliers to cut EV costs after its Model e unit continued to bleed billions in Q1.
Like many rivals, Ford introduced significant price reductions to keep up with Tesla’s price cuts. Although the move has helped boost demand, it’s also costly.
For example, after dropping Mustang Mach-E prices 17% earlier this year, volume shot up by 141%.
Ford’s Mustang Mach-E was the second best-selling electric SUV last quarter, behind Tesla’s Model Y, with 9,589 units sold. That’s up 77% over Q1 2023. The F-150 Lightning remained the top-selling electric pickup in the US, with 7,743 models sold (+80% YOY).
All Ford electric vehicles saw double-digit (or triple-digit) growth in Q1, with E-Transit sales up 148% (2,891).
However, in its first-quarter earnings last month, Ford revealed its Model e EV business lost another $1.3 billion. The loss comes after Model e posted a net loss of around $4.7 billion last year.
The automaker expects the losses to continue piling up, with Model e projected to lose another $5.5 billion this year.
Ford has already delayed several projects, including its three-row electric SUV, as it works to “substantially reduce the costs of the batteries,” according to CEO Jim Farley.
Farley believes the company can better compete with smaller, more affordable EVs. As a result, Ford is shifting funding (including around $12 billion in EV investments) to optimize profitability.
Ford is asking suppliers to cut EV costs
Ford’s CEO stressed that Model E needs to “stand on its own.” To do so, Ford has already implemented several cost-cutting measures.
Its most recent is to work with its suppliers. In a recent memo (obtained by Crain’s Detroit Business), Ford asked suppliers to help cut EV costs as it works toward profitability.
“We have all invested heavily in the success of the EV business, and we will all win or lose together,” stressed Ford’s chief supply chain officer, Liz Door. “To enable affordability, it is of paramount importance that our EV portfolio achieves further levels of material cost efficiency.”
In the note, Ford asked its suppliers to create “incremental cost-reduction proposals” for current and next-gen EVs. These include the F-150 Lightning, Mustang Mach-E, E-Transit, and P800 electric pickup and Ford’s larger electric SUV.
“We need your best ideas to drive cost reduction, even if they have been previously rejected by Ford,” Door said. With “Everything on the table,”
Ford is seeking investment ideas that support profitability. Examples of investments could include “commercial, design, content, footprint, and value chain” actions.
The actions could also involve “adjusting capacity downward where necessary, repurposing capital as needed, understanding spending curves and discussing all options,” the memo stated.
Electrek’s Take
Ford is looking for anything to slow its EV unit from bleeding billions of dollars. The company expects every new EV to make money in the first 12 months of launching. To do so, working with suppliers will be critical.
Rivian is another company that has worked with its suppliers to gain control of costs. The EV maker invited supplier partners to its Normal, IL manufacturing plant to discuss win-win opportunities to cut costs.
Meanwhile, Ford is following Toyota with plans to introduce more hybrids as a bridge to its next-gen vehicles. A move that could set it further behind in the long-run.
If you’re in the market for a new EV, Ford’s recent price cuts make the Mach-E and F-150 Lightning even more attractive. You can use our links below to view deals on Ford’s electric vehicles in your area.
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Environment
Stark VARG MX 1.2 launched as smarter, stronger, and absurdly powerful electric motocross bike
Electric motocross just got another serious upgrade. Stark Future has unveiled its latest evolution of the VARG MX platform – meet the VARG MX 1.2. With more powertrain efficiency, longer range, and a tech-infused new onboard computer that moonlights as a military-grade Android phone, this bike is maintaining the Stark VARG playbook of doing more than keeping up with gas-powered competition, it’s burying them.
Stark Future is flying high, both literally with impressive performance that has helped riders to expand their options so aggressively that it’s gotten itself banned from the X-Games, to proverbially with the company already touting profitability so early in its operations.
At the heart of the VARG MX 1.2 is the same 80 hp (60 kW) electric motor that made the original VARG such a monster on the dirt, easily outgunning traditional 450cc gas bikes. But this time around, riders get even more customization. The power output can be adjusted anywhere from 10 to 80 hp (7.5-60 kW) on the fly, with refined control over the power curve and motor braking. Basically, it’s like having a garage full of bikes in one, and all of them are really impressive!
Helping riders tap into all that performance is a new handlebar-mounted smart device called the Arkenstone. This isn’t your average LCD screen, it’s a full-fledged, ruggedized Android smartphone that connects wirelessly to the bike. Want to change power modes mid-lap? Done. Want to track your lap times and get real-time GPS data? Also done. Stark even partnered with a major map provider to make sure the new “Laps” feature delivers real course splits and terrain data without the need for external apps or gear.
And of course, performance is still king here. The new 7.2 kWh battery tucked into a lightweight magnesium honeycomb case delivers up to 20% more range than before. That means longer rides, harder pushes, and fewer recharge breaks. Oh, and it still puts out 973 Nm of torque at the rear wheel. Not a typo. That’s insane torque.
The updated chassis is no slouch either. Stark redesigned the frame using a stronger, lighter steel alloy, shaving off nearly a kilogram while improving flex and feedback. Suspension was also retuned with KYB components offering 310mm of travel and selectable spring rates based on rider weight – a level of adjustability that’s unheard of from most OEMs.
Motocross legend Kevin Windham, after testing the bike, didn’t hold back: “I’ve ridden everything there is to ride, and this is the future.” He praised the natural feel, instantaneous response, and how quickly it felt like home, even after decades on gas bikes.
But the VARG MX 1.2 isn’t just a lab project. It’s been relentlessly race-tested under the leadership of two-time World Champion Sébastien Tortelli, who now heads up Stark’s racing program. “Racing is where weaknesses show and strengths are proven,” says Tortelli. “Every race, every rider, every condition feeds into what we build.”
Other upgrades include a new overmolded wiring harness for extreme durability, a lighter and more efficient gearbox, new tires (Dunlop or Pirelli, your call), and even a reinforced skid plate made from biodegradable materials. Optional titanium hardware can shave off another 900 grams if you’re counting grams like trophies.
Maintenance? Practically nonexistent. With no pistons, clutches, or filters to fuss over, Stark says its riders can save up to $5,000 over 100 hours of use compared to a traditional gas bike. And in an industry notorious for limited warranties, Stark is backing the entire bike for two years.
Those cost savings are going to be important considering that electric motorcycles usually have higher up-front sticker shock. But with the new Stark, pricing is surprisingly competitive for something this high-end.
The 60 hp (45 kW) standard model starts at US $12,490, while the full-fat 80 hp (60 kW) Alpha comes in at $13,490 (plus a $1,000 tariff charge for US buyers). Bikes are available now through Stark’s global dealer network or directly from the company’s site.
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Trowbridge in Somerset, England, on March 15, 2025.
Anna Barclay | Getty Images News | Getty Images
BP CEO Murray Auchincloss on Tuesday leaned into the growth potential of the company’s recent oil and gas discoveries, as the struggling energy major contends with takeover questions and a major turnaround plan.
“Inside the upstream, we’ve had tremendous performance, along with record operating efficiency [and] along with starting up five new major projects,” BP’s Auchincloss told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe“, just after the release of the company’s second-quarter results.
He added that he was “very optimistic” about the company’s latest exploration discovery in the Bumerangue block in Brazil’s Santos Basin, just over 400 kilometers (248.5 miles) from Rio de Janeiro. BP is currently carrying out tests to further analyze the block’s potential.
The Bumerangue discovery, announced Monday, is the firm’s 10th since the start of the year and reflects a potentially significant boost as BP continues to double down on hydrocarbons.
After underperforming its peers in recent years, the firm has shifted gears by way of a fundamental strategic reset that will see BP prioritize fossil fuels and slash renewable spending.
Earlier on Tuesday, the energy major reported underlying replacement cost profit, used as a proxy for net profit, of $2.35 billion for the three months through June — comfortably beating analyst expectations of $1.81 billion, according to an LSEG-compiled consensus.
Ramping up investor returns, the company also said its quarterly dividend will increase to 8.32 cents from 8 cents and that it will maintain the pace of its share buyback program at $750 million for the second quarter.
Shares of the company were last seen trading 1.6% higher during morning deals.
Takeover speculation
The downturn of recent years has turned BP into the subject of intense takeover speculation, with some questioning a potential future merger with domestic rival Shell. For its part, Shell in late June said that it had “no intention” of making an offer.
UAE oil giant ADNOC, as well as U.S. oil giants Exxon Mobil and Chevron, are among some of the names that have also been touted as possible suitors.
Asked whether the company had been approached by any potential merger partners amid ongoing takeover speculation, Auchincloss said BP is focused on growth.
“That’s what is going to drive the share price up for shareholders,” he added.
CEO of BP Murray Auchincloss speaks during the CERAWeek oil summit in Houston, Texas, on March 19, 2024.
Mark Felix | AFP | Getty Images
Maurizio Carulli, global energy analyst at Quilter Cheviot, said BP’s earnings were the company’s first positive quarterly results “in a very long time,” noting that “what is perhaps most encouraging” was the firm’s outperformance came despite a period of lower oil prices.
“The management team has clearly started delivering on the strategy reset announced a few months ago. There has been huge speculation of late on the fate of BP and whether or not a rival will look to take them out with a merger,” Carulli said.
“If positive results like this continue to be delivered, that speculation may just end up being a blip in BP’s long and storied history,” he added.
Asset review
BP, which is under intense pressure to improve profitability from the likes of activist investor Elliott, noted that it would initiate a further cost review of its assets — mere weeks before Albert Manifold joins BP’s board from Sept. 1 and as chair from Oct. 1.
Asked for further details of this strategic review, Auchincloss told CNBC: “If you think back to 2020, we reduced our costs by 25%, and in 2024 we announced another program to reduce our costs by another 20%. That’s the $4-5 billion that I referenced earlier.”
“If we can achieve that, that will take us to around top quartile in the sector, but I don’t think that is enough,” Auchincloss said.
BP’s net debt came in at $26.04 billion at the end of the second quarter, down from nearly $27 billion compared to the first three months of the year.
“We need to keep driving safely to be the very best in the sector we can be. And that’s why we’re focused on another review to try to drive us toward best in class inside the sector,” Auchincloss added.
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