The companys (Ford's) president and CEO testified that his company would suffer if Congress did not pass legislation to provide financial support to the ailing auto industry. He urged Congress to pass the bill (the Automotive Industry Financing Program--part of the TARP legislation).
Mulally, Dec. 5, 2008: In particular, the collapse of one or both of our domestic competitors would threaten Ford because we have 80 percent overlap in supplier networks and nearly 25 percent of Fords top dealers also own GM and Chrysler franchises.
He also asked Congress to authorize a credit line of up to $9 billion for Ford in case the economy got worse and the company needed it.
Mulally, Dec. 5, 2008: In addition to our plan, we are also here today to request support for the industry. In the near-term, Ford does not require access to a government bridge loan. However, we request a credit line of $9 billion as a critical backstop or safeguard against worsening conditions as we drive transformational change in our company.
In a Jan. 30, 2009, report on the bailout program, the Congressional Research Service noted that Ford is counting on $5 billion from the DOE loan program to support a $14 billion plan to reorient its lineup toward more fuel-efficient vehicles. On June 23, 2009, the Department of Energy announced it would provide $5.9 billion to Ford to transform factories across Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, and Ohio to produce 13 more fuel efficient models.