Beam me to Planet Gore !
Posted on 09/22/2009 2:49:37 PM PDT by Brilliant
Fisker Automotive, a California manufacturer of luxury electric vehicles, will receive more than $500 million in federal loans to develop a plug-in hybrid sports car with a sticker price of nearly $90,000 and a new plug-in hybrid vehicle...
The Energy Department said Tuesday it would lend $528.7 million to Fisker...
"This investment will create thousands of new American jobs and is another critical step in making sure we are positioned to compete for the clean energy jobs of the future," said Energy Secretary Steven Chu. He estimated it would save or create about 5,000 jobs.
Fisker, launched in 2007, is expected to release its first vehicle, the Karma, in the summer of 2010. The $87,900 plug-in luxury sports sedan, which has solar panels on the roof and allows motorists to drive gas-free for 50 miles, will be built in Finland by Valmet Automotive.
Fisker will use $169.3 million in loans for engineering costs to complete the Karma and design tools and equipment at Fisker's office in Pontiac, Mich. The Energy Department said that while the assembly of the Karma will be done overseas, more than 65 percent of the parts will come from U.S. suppliers.
The remaining $359.36 million in loans will be directed to Fisker's Project Nina, an effort by the automaker to develop a lower-cost, higher-volume plug-in hybrid car by late 2012...
"This conditional loan represents a significant step in America's future," said Fisker CEO Henrik Fisker... "With it Fisker Automotive can rapidly develop affordable clean cars that satisfy our passion for driving and help restore the U.S. as an auto industry leader."
Fisker has raised tens of millions of dollars from top venture capital firms such as Palo Alto Investors and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, of which former Vice President Al Gore is a partner...
(Excerpt) Read more at newstribune.com ...
Ping.
Bwaney Fwank thought they said “Fister”.
A 90K car so the well-to-do greenies can feel smug while dozens of US manufacturing plants are idle and they are shipping parts back and forth across the Atlantic. How big a footprint is that?
smells fishy
but what’s a half bil between friends....
Wow, $87.9K for a car that will only go 50 miles at a pop. When can I by one /sarc
AP/Gore tries to imply an electic motor which uses k-watts of energy can be run off a 10w solar panel.
I have horses I have ridden 50 miles and I didn’t pay anywhere near that kind of price for them.
Now, all I need is large enough saddlebags so I can do my grocery shopping from horseback.
Good catch.
It’ll help the Hollywierd crowd feel good about the commute from their mansion to the studio.
***The Energy Department said that while the assembly of the Karma will be done overseas [in Finland], more than 65 percent of the parts will come from U.S. suppliers.***
Makes sense to use all that energy to ship all those parts. Now we know why it costs so much, Shipping charges.
Looks more like Gore’s investment company is passing along government money.
Probably taking a % of it now along with an agreement for more later... would like to see the details on THAT!
So how is the electrical grid going to handle all these new “electric” vehicles? We haven’t built a power plant in 25 years!
Did they forget about that part???
They should have used some of that stimulus money to build desalinization plants, nuke plants, and updating the electrical grid, more efficient alternative fuels...But no, the 20 million dollar ATV off road park, the 700k Polar Bear exhibit was more important...
For f**k sake.
HALF A BILLION DOLLARS!!!! Henry Ford is rolling in his grave.
Right. The public is beating down the doors for a 90K electric vehicle. Can't build em fast enough. /s
$600,000,000 divided by 5000 jobs is $120,000 per job. I bet private industry could do it for less.
Let me think about this for a minute, car companies are struggling and they expect to sell $90,000 cars that travel 50 miles.
In addition, they are going to ship parts to Finland(what is name of that famous Finnish auto again?)put them together and then shipped them back.
No dealer network, no trained mechanics, no nothing.
Sounds like another ALBORE winner.
More - Fisker loan sparks EnerDel hopes
By Ted Evanoff
A Indianapolis battery maker EnerDel’s big break may have landed Tuesday in the form of a huge federal research loan going to a new electric car venture near Los Angeles.
The U.S. Department of Energy loaned $528.7 million to Fisker Automotive of Irvine, Calif., a venture backed in part by the Qatar Investment Authority, Palo Alto Investors and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.
‘The loan would enable Fisker to complete the development of its first car, the $88,000 Karma, and speed research and development of the $50,000 high-volume model labeled Project Nina.’
Fisker’s letter of intent calls for EnerDel batteries in the Karma and possibly in follow-up models.
EnerDel has applied for a $480 million federal loan to construct the plant under the $25 billion energy department program to develop fuel-efficient cars.
“We’re thrilled DOE got another loan out the door and this is to one of our own,’’ said Charles Gassenheimer, chairman of EnerDel owner Ener1. “I think this may bring us one step closer to getting our own loan’’ from the Energy Department. EnerDel, which has plants in Indianapolis and Noblesville employing 150, has not disclosed a site for the bigger third plant.
EnerDel most likely would ship battery cells made in Indianapolis to Europe for assembly into the battery packs for the Karma. It has received a $118 million federal matching grant to expand its current facilities in Indianapolis.
Fisker’s proposed cars are plug-in hybrids that run on an electric motor powered by a massive battery recharged from a wall outlet or a small engine aboard the vehicle. The engine is used only for recharging the battery.
Fisker Automotive, the brainchild of Henrik Fisker and Bernhard Koehler, opened in 2007 with partner Quantum Fuel Systems Technologies Worldwide of Irvine, Calif.
Kleiner Perkins, Palo Alto Investors and Qatar Investment, a sovereign wealth fund in Doha, have invested $200 million in Fisker Automotive. Former Vice President Al Gore is a Kleiner partner, although its key figure is Silicon Valley star Ray Lane, former Oracle Corp. president.
EnerDel traces to former General Motors electrical-parts powerhouse Delco Remy and Ener1, a New York-based technology company part-owned by Russian pulp and paper mogul Boris Zingarevich.
Note: this topic is from 9/22/2009.Thanks Brilliant.
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