Ford begins local battery cell production at BlueOvalSK in Kentucky

The cells will be used in nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) batteries for its F-150 Lightning pickup trucks and E-Transit vans, which are respectively made at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn, Michigan and the Kansas City Assembly Plant in Claycomo, Missouri. 

Ford and Korean battery maker SK On founded BlueOvalSK in 2022 and the partners have invested $5.8 billion to build the BlueOval SK Battery Park, which covers 607 hectares at the battery manufacturing campus in Glendale. 

“We are proud to build batteries at our Kentucky 1 facility that will power next-generation electric vehicles,” said Michael Adams, CEO of BlueOvalSK. “The start of production is a significant milestone that strengthens our position in the electric vehicle battery market.” 

The Kentucky site is home to two battery plants but production at the second plant has been pushed back to 2027. Sales of the F-150 Lightning were down 14% in July, and down 17% for the first half of 2025. Meanwhile sales of the E-Transit were down by 40% across the month of July and 34% for the first half of the year. The Trump administration is also ending the federal EV tax credit for EV purchases at the end of September.

BlueOvalSK has said it is now looking beyond Ford for the sale of its batteries, including in the energy storage sector. 

Earlier in August Ford unveiled its new Universal EV Platform and Universal EV Production System, both designed to streamline electric vehicle production while boosting domestic manufacturing. The platform and assembly process are being implemented as part of a $5 billion total investment across two US sites. 

BlueOvalSK is also proceeding with its $5.6 billion mega-campus in Stanton, Tennessee, named Blue Oval City, which will house a BlueOvalSK battery plant, an assembly line for electric F-Series pickup trucks, key suppliers and recycling facilities.