The Auto Writer

The Obama administration announced on Wednesday that $2.4 billion in battery and electric vehicle grant money was being awarded to states, colleges, businesses and automakers, funds which are to be used for advancing next generation battery technology and electric vehicles. General Motors, the Ford Motor Company and Chrysler each scored big, netting $410 million of the funds awarded. President Obama chose Elkhart, Indiana as the venue for his announcement, a city which is also home base for many recreational vehicle and van conversion companies.

Netting Millions In Funding

GM will receive nearly $240 million in grant money of which $106 million will be used for its planned battery pack assembly factory which will be located in Brownstown Township, MI according to The Detroit News. Ford will receive approximately $100 million while the newly-minted Chrysler Group, LLC will receive $70 million.

Several companies also came out quite well including Johnson Controls who will receive nearly $300 million for production of battery cells and packs as well as battery separators for hybrid and electric vehicles. A123 Systems, Inc. will get about $250 million while will be used for various electric vehicle components including battery cells and modules, electrode coatings, and the assembly of complete battery pack systems for hybrid and electric vehicles.

“If we want to reduce our dependence on oil, put Americans back to work and reassert our manufacturing sector as one of the greatest in the world, we must produce the advanced, efficient vehicles of the future,” said President Obama.

Three Technology Areas Funded

According to the U.S. Energy Department, the new awards cover the following areas:

• $1.5 billion in grants to U.S. based manufacturers to produce batteries and their components and to expand battery recycling capacity;

• $500 million in grants to U.S. based manufacturers to produce electric drive components for vehicles, including electric motors, power electronics, and other drive train components; and

• $400 million in grants to purchase thousands of plug-in hybrid and all-electric vehicles for test demonstrations in several dozen locations; to deploy them and evaluate their performance; to install electric charging infrastructure; and to provide education and workforce training to support the transition to advanced electric transportation systems.

The Obama administration expects that the grant money will lead to thousands of new jobs being created as the respective governments and businesses gear up to meet demand. Mitsubishi, Nissan and General Motors are each promising delivery of electric vehicles during 2010, with most other manufacturers expected to follow suit soon thereafter. Virtually every full line automobile manufacturer has plans to expand hybrid technology and/or introduce their own pure electric vehicles by 2015.

The president made his announcement at Navistar International Corporation in Elkhart, a company that will receive $39 million to manufacture electric trucks. Navistar was formerly known as International Harvester and currently builds diesel engines, school buses and chassis which underpin a number of recreational vehicle models.

To view a list of award winners, please visit the Energy Department’s page outlining the recipients.

Source: U.S. Department of Energy