Ford (NYSE:F) Delivers Ford Transit Connect Electric to US, UK Markets

Ford (NYSE:F) and partner Azure Dynamics have started their first shipments of the Ford Transit Connect Electric to North America and the UK.

The Ford Transit Connect Electric is an all-electric commercial vehicle, which includes the Force Drive powertrain from Azure Dynamics.

Among entities pre-ordering the vehicle were Xcel Energy (NYSE:XEL), AT&T (NYSE:T), Southern California Edison, Johnson Controls Inc. (NYSE:JCI), New York Power Authority, Canada Post and Toronto Atmospheric Fund EV300.

Ford director of Electrification Programs and Engineering, Sherif Marakby, said, “Supplier collaboration is important on all Ford product programs, but it was especially key in this effort, which went from contract signing to vehicle production in 13 months,” said . “A strong teamwork environment established by Azure and Ford was critical to delivering this vehicle.”

“The Transit Connect Electric program is a great representation of our product development approach,” added Scott Harrison, CEO, Azure Dynamics. “We have been able to focus on integration of our Force Drive powertrain solution and benefit from Ford’s expertise in building ground-up global vehicle platforms. Meanwhile, capital costs are kept in check by contracting AM General for labor and assembly services – an area where the company excels. Transit Connect Electric is a revolutionary technology and achieving our aggressive time line is a testament to the professionalism and spirit of cooperation among all the project partners.”

The Transit Connect Electric should be able to travel up to 80 miles for each charge. It's unclear how much time it'll take away from productivity, depending on how long a charge lasts. Gasoline run vehicles can of course run much further and longer, eliminating the need to stop so often. And with electric, they would surely stop well short of the 80 mile mark to ensure they aren't stuck somewhere.