El presidente estadounidense, Barack Obama, anunció 2.400 millones de dólares de subvenciones para acelerar el desarrollo y la producción de las baterías que se instalarán en los futuros vehículos eléctricos.
El dinero será repartido entre 48 proyectos. Al menos 1.200 millones de dólares irán a parar al estado de Michigan y los tres grandes fabricantes estadounidenses de automóviles, General Motors, Ford y Chrysler.
El presidente Obama dijo que "si queremos reducir nuestra dependencia del petróleo, proporcionar trabajos a los estadounidenses y reafirmar nuestro sector manufacturero como uno de los mejores del mundo, debemos producir los vehículos avanzados y eficientes del futuro".
La Casa Blanca dijo que las subvenciones, junto con otros 2.400 millones de dólares que las empresas invertirán de sus propios fondos, permitirán la creación de miles de puestos de trabajos.
Más de la mitad de la cifra presupuestada, 1.500 millones de dólares, será entregada a empresas basadas en Estados Unidos para producir baterías y componentes y aumentar la capacidad de reciclaje de las baterías.
Otros 500 millones de dólares serán para producir motores eléctricos y otros componentes del árbol motor de los vehículos eléctricos.
Un total de 400 millones de dólares estarán destinados a la compra de miles de vehículos híbridos enchufables y coches eléctricos para realizar pruebas, evaluar su rendimiento, instalar la infraestructura para recargar los vehículos eléctricos y proporcionar capacitación.
Las empresas e instituciones de Michigan recibirán unos 1.000 millones de dólares para la producción de baterías. Además, GM recibirá subvenciones por valor de 240 millones de dólares, de los que 106 millones irán destinados a la planta de montaje de baterías que tiene planeada en la localidad de Brownstown Township.
Las declaraciones de Obama buscaban en parte subir los ánimos, pero también defender su temario económico. En el corazón de una pequeña comunidad del país, el mandatario expresó su confianza en el espíritu estadounidense.
"Me comprometo a una estrategia que asegure que Estados Unidos esté a la cabeza", afirmó Obama al promover un programa de subvenciones de 2.400 millones de dólares para desarrollar una industria de automóviles eléctricos, desde baterías hasta motores.
El mandatario habló cerca de la región limítrofe de Michigan e Indiana, los dos estados que más se beneficiarán con las concesiones. Los planes forman parte de un programa de estímulo de 787.000 millones de dólares aprobado por el Congreso por exhortación de Obama, el cual defendió el miércoles en medio de críticas de que ha sido lento en arrancar.
Obama afirmó que las fábricas de Indiana "están resucitando", una declaración que le hizo recibir vítores en una región que atraviesa por problemas económicos y a la que viajó para promover su costoso plan de estímulo.
El presidente anunció que su paquete de estímulo está promoviendo decenas de miles de empleos y que Indiana es el segundo destinatario más grande de estas subvenciones.
El presidente habló en la planta de manufactura de Monaco RV, recién adquirida en junio por Navistar International Corp. después que su dueño anterior quebrara debido al desplome en la industria de vehículos recreativos.
El área de Elkhart-Goshen, en Indiana, alcanzó en junio una tasa de desempleo de 16,8%. La cifra es 10 puntos porcentuales superior a la del mismo mes del año pasado.
General Motors Corp. recibirá más de 240 millones de dólares, lo que refleja tres subvenciones separadas, según la lista publicada por el Departamento de Energía de Estados Unidos. Ford Motor recibirá un total de 92,7 millones, que incluyen 62,7 millones de dólares para una instalación de piezas de sistemas de tracción eléctrica en Michigan. Chrysler LLC recibirá 70 millones de dólares para el diseño y creación de un sistema avanzado de enchufe para las camionetas y minifurgonetas híbridas.
La mayor subvención individual irá a Johnson Controls Inc., que recibirá casi 300 millones de dólares para producir piezas de baterías para vehículos híbridos y eléctricos, según la lista distribuida por la Casa Blanca. Johnson Controls está construyendo una fábrica de baterías en Michigan con la ayuda de Ford.
La segunda mayor subvención individual fue asignada a A123 Systems In., que recibirá 249,1 millones. La compañía tiene un acuerdo con Chrysler LLC baterías para los vehículos eléctricos e híbridos.
EnerDel, la matriz de Ener1 Inc. (HEV), recibirá 118,5 de dólares para producir celdas de iones de litio en una planta en Indianápolis.
—————–
$2.4 Billion in Grants to Make Cars a Bit Greener
The Obama administration announced plans on Tuesday to distribute $2.4 billion in grants for battery manufacturing, mostly for electric vehicles.
The money, which in most cases will be matched by a like amount from the recipient, was liberally sprinkled in the hard-hit auto manufacturing belt. Some of the money is for factories to make battery chemicals; some of it is for plants that make battery components, or assemble cells into packs.
President Obama was in Elkhart, Ind., for example, to give a $39 million grant to Navistar International, a truck manufacturer. And he sent the vice president, the secretaries of Energy and Commerce, the deputy secretary of Transportation and head of the Environmental Protection Agency to other cities to make similar announcements.
The Volt, the plug-in hybrid by General Motors, dominated the grants.
G.M. received $105.9 million for the production of battery packs for the car, which is planned for next year and is supposed to go the first 40 miles each day on electricity and the rest on gasoline. G.M. will make the packs in Brownstown, Mich.
Compact Power, an affiliate of LG Chemical received $151.4 million, the largest single grant, for production of cells for the Volt. It will do that work in St. Clair, Pontiac and Holland, Mich.
In addition, G.M. got $30.5 million to build 125 Volts for electric utilities and 500 more for other consumers to use as a test fleet.
And it received $105 million for construction of factories to produce a second generation of electric vehicles, with rear-wheel drive, in White Marsh, Maryland, and Wixom, Mich. (The Volt is front-wheel drive.)
A cross-town rival, the Ford Motor Company, got $30 million to partner with 15 electric utilities and deploy up to 150 plug-in hybrid vehicles, including the Escape, its small sport utility vehicle, and the E450, heavy-duty vans derived from the old Econoline series.
Chrysler got $70 million to develop and deploy 220 plug-in hybrid pickups and minivans. Since the auto bailout, the federal government owns 61 percent of G.M. and 8 percent of Chrysler.
Greg Martin, a spokesman for G.M., said the reason that the company did so well in the grants was that it was further ahead than its American competitors in developing a plug-in hybrid.
“It’s really captured the imagination of the country and the consumer,” Mr. Martin said. “Here you have the administration sending a clear signal, that battery powered vehicles, extended range and pure electric, are important.”
“If we’re not going to take the leadership in this, other countries will,” he said.
In fact, foreign manufacturers with plants in the United States also got a slice. A partner of Nissan, Electric Transportation Engineering Corporation, which is based in Phoenix, got $99.8 million to demonstrate up to 5,000 all-electric vehicles.
Not all the money was for batteries. A small Oregon company, Cascade Sierra Solutions, got $22.2 million to install electric outlets in truck stops, and to help modify 5,450 trucks, so that when drivers park, the cabs can be heated or cooled, according to the season, without idling their diesel engines. Colleges and universities got money for research or for training mechanics.
Why $2.4 Billion of Battery Grants? To Get US Competitive in Electric Cars
It’s now clearer than ever: Electric cars are coming to showrooms near you. They will be fully competitive, their makers are deadly serious, and they will be "real cars" rather than the golf carts people seem to worry about.
We’ve experienced the 2011 Chevrolet Volt mule, the 2011 Coda Sedan, powertrain from the 2012 Nissan Leaf, the 2012 Ford Focus EV prototype, even the disappointing Mini E. Many more will follow, and soon.
But in the aftermath of US government rescues of General Motors and Chrysler, policymakers worry about whether US automakers and other manufacturers can remain (or become) globally competitive as electric cars move into the mainstream.
Can the US compete?
That’s the reason President Barack Obama announced $2.4 billion of grants yesterday, to makers of automotive-scale lithium-ion cells, the battery packs that will house them, the electric-drive components they will power, and the vehicles that will use them.
The funds, "to Accelerate the Manufacturing and Deployment of the Next Generation of U.S. Batteries and Electric Vehicles," must help US companies get up to speed in an industry where more than half of all lithium-ion cells are designed and manufactured in Asia.
These grants differ from the $8 billion of low-interest loans for advanced auto technology announced in June by the Department of Energy loans. Those funds, which must be repaid, went to Ford, Nissan, and Tesla to re-equip factories to build more efficient cars.
Underlining the focus on the US domestic auto industry, over half the battery funds ($1.3 billion) will go to companies and universities in the state of Michigan. Covering 48 separate projects in 25 states (out of a total of 122 applications), the grants address three broad areas:
• $1.5 billion for battery cell, battery pack, and component production, as well as battery recycling.
• $500 million for production of components, motors, and electronics for electric-drive vehicles.
• $400 million for demonstration purchases of plug-in hybrids and electric vehicles, charging infrastructure, and training.
What’s important?
In analyzing key decisions throughout the long list of grants, plug-in hybrid advocacy group CalCars focused and summarized the most important points as follows:
• Battery and materials manufacturing grants go to a range of lithium-ion chemistries, most to large, well-established cell makers and packagers, as well as two grants for lead-acid development for micro or mild hybrids.
• General Motors gets $240 million in three grants, Ford gets $92.7 million, and Chrsyler gets $70 million. Smaller US integrators and manufacturers, including Tesla Motors and Fisker Automotive, didn’t receive grants.
• Most component maker grants went to the largest and best-established suppliers.
• Oregon, Washington, California, Arizona and Tennessee will get 12,500 battery charging stations.
• Grants will fund purchase of 5,000 Nissan electric cars, 220 Chrysler plug-in hybrid pickups and minivans, 378 trucks and shuttle buses in southern California, 400 Navistar electric delivery trucks, 130 Ford Escape Hybrid Plug-Ins, and 500 Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric vehicles for consumers plus 125 for utilities.
Focus: Big auto and parts companies
Some criticism was directed at awards that benefit non-US companies, including Compact Power Inc. (owned by Korea’s LG Chem), which got $150 million to produce components for the battery pack to be used in the 2011 Chevrolet Volt. Another is Saft Groupe, which manufactures lithium-ion cells in France in a joint venture with US automaker Johnson Controls Inc.
The focus on large, established companies also troubled some smaller applicants whose did not receive grants. They pointed out that technology innovation often comes from small or start-up companies. Countering that, analysts noted that building, validating, and selling automotive components at acceptable cost customarily requires a deep base of experience–which start-ups may not have.
www1.eere.energy.gov/recovery/pdfs/battery_awardee_list.pdf
www1.eere.energy.gov/recovery/pdfs/battery_awardee_map.pdf
www.electricdrive.org/index.php
