Ford open to partnerships in green technology, but will remain cautious

Speaking on the sidelines at the Fortune Brainstorm Green conference, FoMoCo’s Chairman Bill Ford Jr. said on Monday that the company is open to partnerships in green technology but will be cautious in committing to any alliance.

“We are always open to it but I think we will be careful before we jump,” Bill Ford said in an interview with Reuters. “You always go into the joint venture with the premise that you will save money and save manpower, and our experience often has been that it does neither.”

Bill said that partners heading into any alliance needed to have clear agreement on the division of work and the ownership of any intellectual property created by the result of a partnership.

“I am not saying every joint venture is bad,” he said. “But you have to be very thoughtful and really have very clear expectations.”

– By: Stephen Calogera

Source: Reuters