Ford to invest $1.05 billion in South Africa to build updated Ranger – By Jordyn Grzelewski (The Detroit News) / Feb 2 2021
Ford Motor Co. on Tuesday said it would invest more than $1 billion in its South Africa operations to support expanded production of an updated version of its Ranger pickup truck, starting in 2022.
The investment tied to Ford’s Silverton Assembly Plant, located just east of capital city Pretoria, marks the Blue Oval’s largest to date in its nearly century-long history in South Africa. The investment is expected to increase the plant’s capacity from 168,000 vehicles annually to 200,000, and will add 1,200 “incremental” jobs with Ford in South Africa, for a total workforce of 5,500 employees.
Ranger trucks built at Silverton supply the domestic market as well as more than 100 other markets globally — but not North America. Additionally, the South African plant will build Volkswagen pickup trucks as part of Ford’s strategic alliance with the German automaker.
