Ford Australia president and CEO Andrew Birkic confirmed the upcoming Puma EV would join the E-Transit, E-Transit Custom and Mustang Mach-E as the fourth of five promised electrified models to go on sale in Australia by the end of next year.

“When it comes to our story on electrification, another entry we’ll be adding … is Puma,” said Birkic at the media launch of the E-Transit electric van. “We will be bringing in a [fully-electric] ​ Puma. We’re making some decisions around our line-up and we believe that is the right investment for us. Puma has done well. It continues to win awards. So, we know that that's certainly an important play for us in the future.”

The Puma EV is set to become the smallest and most affordable EV in the Ford lineup.

While details haven’t been released about the important new model – Ford has only showed a shadowy silhouette – the Puma BEV is expected to utilise the architecture of the petrol-powered models that will continue alongside it.

No word on pricing, although clearly it will play at the more affordable end of the EV market. The Puma EV looks set to compete with the BYD Atto 3, GWM Ora, MG4 and Fiat 500e in the circa-$50,000 price bracket.

The Ford Puma electric SUV is understood to be closely related to the internal combustion engine Puma, though exact details remain under wraps for now. It is expected to share battery technology with the 2024 Ford Transit Courier city-sized commercial van.

In van application the electric motor will send 100kW through the front wheels, providing insight into what to expect from the all-electric Puma light SUV.

A battery size of around 55kWh is expected, enough to provide a range of around 370km.

Ford is expected to confirm a 100kW DC charging speed, that would see the battery top up from 10 to 80 percent in less than 35 minutes.