GM puts its money into electric motor business
Wednesday, 27 January 2010
DETROIT, Jan 26 (Reuters): General Motors Co said Tuesday it will set up a 246-million-dollar facility backed by funding from the US government to build electric motors to power future hybrids and possibly pure electric vehicles.
The move is part of a push by GM and the Obama administration to develop technology for electric cars in the United States and cut into the lead by Asian automakers and suppliers in that potential boom market.
The first GM-designed and built electric motors are scheduled to appear in 2013 in rear-wheel-drive hybrid vehicles. GM said it would consider building motors in-house for a broader range of electric vehicles.
GM said it would announce a site for the electric motor manufacturing programme later this week.
Electric motors -- the equivalent of internal combustion engines that power conventional vehicles -- convert electrical energy from batteries to mechanical energy.
GM's investment in electric motor technology will be underwritten in part by a 105-million-dollar grant awarded by the US Department of Energy in August, the company said.
The US government holds 61 per cent of the company after investing $50 billion in it.
The investments are part of the top US automaker's efforts to build more fuel-efficient vehicles and reshape its public image after emerging from a US government-financed bankruptcy in July.
"By designing and manufacturing electric motors in-house, we can more efficiently use energy from batteries as they evolve, potentially reducing cost and weight," GM Vice Chairman Tom Stephens said.
Lagging rivals such as Toyota Motor Corp on the conventional gas-electric hybrid technology, GM has been rushing to take the lead in the market for plug-in hybrids like the Chevrolet Volt slated to be released later this year.
The Volt, designed to run for 40 miles from a single charge of a lithium-ion battery pack, has attracted intense interest as one of the first rechargeable, battery-powered vehicles set to launch in the United States.
The move is part of a push by GM and the Obama administration to develop technology for electric cars in the United States and cut into the lead by Asian automakers and suppliers in that potential boom market.
The first GM-designed and built electric motors are scheduled to appear in 2013 in rear-wheel-drive hybrid vehicles. GM said it would consider building motors in-house for a broader range of electric vehicles.
GM said it would announce a site for the electric motor manufacturing programme later this week.
Electric motors -- the equivalent of internal combustion engines that power conventional vehicles -- convert electrical energy from batteries to mechanical energy.
GM's investment in electric motor technology will be underwritten in part by a 105-million-dollar grant awarded by the US Department of Energy in August, the company said.
The US government holds 61 per cent of the company after investing $50 billion in it.
The investments are part of the top US automaker's efforts to build more fuel-efficient vehicles and reshape its public image after emerging from a US government-financed bankruptcy in July.
"By designing and manufacturing electric motors in-house, we can more efficiently use energy from batteries as they evolve, potentially reducing cost and weight," GM Vice Chairman Tom Stephens said.
Lagging rivals such as Toyota Motor Corp on the conventional gas-electric hybrid technology, GM has been rushing to take the lead in the market for plug-in hybrids like the Chevrolet Volt slated to be released later this year.
The Volt, designed to run for 40 miles from a single charge of a lithium-ion battery pack, has attracted intense interest as one of the first rechargeable, battery-powered vehicles set to launch in the United States.