The Obama administration is announcing this morning that it’s providing billions to Ford, Nissan and Tesla Motors for the development of hybrid and electric vehicles. Ford will receive the bulk of the $8 billion allotted, which is the first chunk of loan commitments provided as part of the DOE’s Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing program to further the advancement of fuel efficient vehicles in the US. Ford will use the cash to transform factories in Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri and Ohio for the conversion of truck to car manufacturing and general fuel efficiency increases across many of its most popular models.
Also receiving government funds are Nissan ($1.6 billion) and privately held Tesla Motors ($465 million). Nissan will use the funds to retool its Tennessee factory for the production of electric cars and build an advanced battery plant while Tesla will use the funds to manufacture electric drive trains and vehicles in California. The first loan is expected to finance a facility which will be used to manufacture the Tesla Model S sedan beginning in 2011.
Additional loans are expected to be made over the next several months to auto manufactures and suppliers to retool the industry. Energy Secretary Steven Chu indicated they are working with Chrysler and GM on their applications for retooling loans but they would not be eligible until they emerged from bankruptcy in a viable financial position.
“These loans — and the additional support we will provide through the Section 136 program — will create good jobs and help the auto industry to meet and even exceed the tough fuel economy standards we’ve set, while helping us to regain our competitive edge in the world market,” Obama said in a statement.
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The CO2 emissions are increasing much, and the big usage of automobiles last years, means that it will not stop increasing. We should reduce it, with such cars, like this. I hope that car builders will pay more attention to the earth and will care about it much more.
Really Thank you for allowing me to write down this.
People are always trying to advertise cheap cars that will help us to help the environmental issue that we have been in for sometime. I seem to find that most or all of the ideas people come up with all have a negative that could make it worse. Is there such thing as a 4 wheeled moving vehicle that will not harm the environment in anyway.