Ford CEO Jim Farley admitted to driving a Chinese-made electric vehicle (EV) on Monday despite his company previously receiving billions in taxpayer dollars to manufacture EVs in America.
Farley said that he owned a Xiaomi Speed Ultra 7 EV while talking to Robert Llewellyn, a British actor, on “The Fully Charged Podcast” on Monday, according to a Wednesday report from Business Insider. The vehicle is sold at a base price of about $30,000, and is only available to purchase in China, according to the report.
“I don’t like talking about the competition so much, but I drive the Xiaomi,” Farley said, Business Insider reported.
“We flew one from Shanghai to Chicago, and I’ve been driving it for six months now, and I don’t want to give it up,” Farley added, according to the report.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) previously announced a conditional commitment for a loan of up to $9.2 billion to BlueOval SK, a battery manufacturer, in July 2023. The conditional agreement was aimed at funding the construction of manufacturing plants that would create EV batteries for Ford.
Ford announced in September that it was offering free chargers and home installations in the hopes to attract more EV buyers. The company announced in August that it was canceling plans to build three-row electric SUVs, and previously reported a loss of $1.3 billion in the first quarter of the year.
The Biden-Harris administration has aimed to boost domestic production of EVs as part of President Joe Biden’s green energy agenda. The administration has handed out large sums to help fund domestic EV projects as automakers in China have continued to dominate the market.
A wide array of other major American motor companies have been struggling amid a lack of demand in the EV market. General Motors reported a loss of $1.7 billion in sales and production of its EV line in January.
Ford did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.
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