Three car companies got word Tuesday they will get government loans to develop innovative, advanced vehicle technologies. The Obama administration says the loans will create thousands of green jobs and reduce the nation's dependence on foreign oil.
The loan commitments announced by President Barack Obama include:
-$5.9 billion for Ford Motor Company to transform factories across Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri and Ohio and to produce 13 more fuel efficient models.
-$1.6 billion to Nissan North America to retool their Smyrna, Tennessee factory to build advanced electric automobiles and to build an advanced battery manufacturing facility.
-$465 million to Tesla Motors to manufacture electric drive trans and electric vehicles in California. The first loan will finance a manufacturing facility for the Tesla Model S sedan, which is more affordable than its first vehicle, the Roadster.
These are the first conditional loan commitments reached as part of the Department of Energy's Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing program. The Department plans to make additional loans under this program over the next several months to large and small auto manufacturers and parts suppliers.
AMP Car Company in Blue Ash has an application for one of these loans. It is still pending. AMP has requested $20 million to buy a building in the Blue Ash area to mass-convert cars to an electric version. It currently converts the Saturn Sky into an electric vehicle.
