05:42 AM EDT, 10/03/2025 (MT Newswires) -- (Updates with Ford's statement in the last paragraph)

Ford Motor ( F ) South Africa's planned employee layoffs are driven by lower European orders for its Ranger pickup truck and lower export volumes for its plug-in hybrid Ranger model, Reuters reported Wednesday, citing Neale Hill, president of Ford Motor Company Africa.

Ford Motor's ( F ) South African business intends to lay off over 470 employees to realign production capacity in an effort to meet market demand, trade union Solidarity said last month.

Since April in the UK, double-cab pickups with a payload of one tonne or more have been reclassified as passenger cars rather than commercial vans for tax purposes, making them more expensive to own, the report said.

"As a consequence of that, people have unfortunately reduced their volume. So that's had a big impact in terms of our European orders," Hill told Reuters,

"We haven't seen the plug-in hybrid Ranger hit the volumes that we've been looking for," Hill said, according to the report.

"Ford in Southern Africa (FMCSA) is making necessary adjustments to our manufacturing operations at both the Struandale Engine Plant and the Silverton Assembly Plant. These changes are part of our ongoing efforts to optimise production and respond to evolving market demands," the company said in an emailed statement to MT Newswires.

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