Ford Motor Company on Thursday launched its first ethanol-compatible sedan - the Ford Focus - on the Thai market, reported dpa. Ford Motor chairman and chief executive officer Bill Ford announced the launch of the Ford Focus model in Hua Hin, 130 kilometres south of Bangkok, where he was presiding over the opening of a new Ford showroom in the seaside resort. The Ford Focus will be imported from Ford's factory in the Philippines, entering Thailand with low import tariffs granted under the Association of South East Asian Nations Free Trade Area (AFTA) agreement. "In keeping with our commitment to innovation and building a better world, it (Ford Focus) also offers the latest ethanol technology which allows it to run on ethanol blends up to 20 per cent as well as normal benzene," Ford told a press conference. "The Ford Focus is the first E20 capable sedan to be introduced in Thailand," said the Ford CEO. Ford currently produced about 24,000 hybrid vehicles worldwide annually, but by 2010 the company plans to increase its hybrid production to approximately 250,000 units per annum, Ford said. --mor 1142 Local Time 0842 GMT
