Ford Europe began mass production of its electric car at its large plant in the western German city of Cologne on Tuesday.
The launch had been planned for September last year but was delayed on account of a new standard for the crucial vehicle batteries.
Now, the first vehicle is set to be handed over to customers on Tuesday afternoon. The plant will produce the Ford Explorer and a second electric model.
Ford has been assembling cars in Cologne since 1930 and produced its classic compact Ford Fiesta there. Fiesta production came to an end last year amid preparations for the electric model.
From 2013 to 2018, Ford produced an electric version of the Focus in Saarland, but only in small numbers and without great success.
The company has invested almost €2 billion ($2.2 billion) in the Cologne plant for the switch to electric. It plans to make up to 250,000 electric cars a year there, including a compact SUV, production of which is starting on Tuesday.
Ford has been slow making the switch to electric, but is hoping for high sales from the new car, even though demand for electric vehicles has slowed overall.