on the surface ford motor co would seem an unlikely party to be on the receiving end of the largest loan that an office within the us department of energy has ever doled out just last month the automaker touted the almost 29 billion of cash on its balance sheet and the more than 46 billion worth of total liquidity at its disposal the energy department nevertheless added to that on thursday announcing a loan of as much as 92 billion to blueoval sk a venture constructing three plants that will produce batteries for ford’s future electric vehicles