Just two months after a fire at a key aluminum supplier interrupted Ford Motor Co.’s pickup and SUV production, a second fire has broken out at that same aluminum factory.
A spokeswoman for Novelis, an aluminum plant in Oswego, New York, confirmed a fire erupted at the factory the morning of Nov. 20. The fire is now under control and all workers were safely evacuated from the facility.
In a statement sent to the Detroit Free Press from Novelis spokeswoman Julie Groover, the company said: “Crews are still onsite to ensure it is fully extinguished. We will confirm more when we have further information.”
Ford spokeswoman Ursula Muller told the Detroit Free Press in the early afternoon of Nov. 20 that, “We’re aware of the situation and we’re working with Novelis to learn more.”
Information about the impact to Novelis customers and timing for when repairs to that area of the plant can be made remain undetermined at this time, Groover said.
Ford’s stock took a tumble on the news. In early afternoon trading it was down 3.03% to $12.50 a share.
This latest fire follows a late-night fire on Sept. 16 at the Novelis plant. The Wall Street Journal reported that Thursday’s fire appears to be in the same area of the facility as the Sept. 16 fire, citing people familiar with the matter.
Novelis had planned to restart aluminum production this year in the part of the plant damaged from the Sept. 16 fire. For that reason, Ford leaders said last month they believed they could mitigate some of the production disruption due to the fire.
Ford uses aluminum in the bodies of its pickups and SUVs and it is Novelis’ largest automotive customer. Last month, Ford was forced to halt production of all-electric F-150 Lightning pickups that it makes at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn. That production remains idled and Ford leaders are reportedly discussing the all-electric pickup’s future.
Ford also temporarily paused production last month of its Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator large SUVs made at Kentucky Truck plant in Louisville.
Ford leaders warned last month that the company expected the difficulty in getting aluminum due to the fire to hamper production of its top-selling profit-making F-150 gasoline pickups. Ford builds the gasoline-powered F-150 at its Dearborn Truck Plant and Kansas City Assembly Plant in Claycomo, Missouri.
In its third-quarter earnings report, Ford said the shortage in aluminum and production disruptions will cost Ford $1.5 billion to $2 billion over the next few months into next year. Ford expects to mitigate at least $1 billion of that, putting the ultimate hit to its adjusted earnings before interest and taxes at about $1 billion or less. As a result of the first fire’s impact, Ford said it was lowering its full year profit guidance to $6 billion to $6.5 billion compared with previous guidance of $6.5 billion to $7.5 billion.
The automaker said it planned to make up the lost F-150 production early next year by adding a third shift at Dearborn Truck Plant to build an extra 50,000 trucks in 2026.
Jamie L. LaReau is the senior autos writer for USA Today Co. who covers Ford Motor Co. for the Detroit Free Press. Contact Jamie at jlareau@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @jlareauan. To sign up for our autos newsletter. Become a subscriber.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Another fire breaks out at a key Ford aluminum supplier
Reporting by Jamie L. LaReau, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
