Longmont, Colorado is home of UQM Technologies; which is one of 48 advanced battery and electric drive projects across the country funded by Recovery Act.
The U.S. will have increased capacity to produce electric-drive vehicles batteries from virtually zero in 2008 up to 500,000 per year in 2015.
In 2009, following the success of the FreedomCAR project, UQM was awarded $45 million in Recovery Act funding to support the development of two types of Electric Vehicle (EV) systems: a propulsion/generator system for battery electric, hybrid, and plug-in hybrid passenger vehicles, and power assist motor/generators for parallel hybrid trucks and buses; helping to produce systems for 120,000 electric drive vehicles a year.
In keeping with emerging EV technologies, the Vehicles Technology Program also awarded $3 million to UQM to develop a non-rare-earth permanent magnet motor architecture, which will enable the use of low energy magnet technology.
Without question, UQM and Its partnerships like this that are powering the commercialization of emerging EV technology. Partnerships like these across the private and public sectors are the kind of investments that are helping America win the clean energy race.
Source: US Department of Energy, http://energy.gov/articles/ev-technology-accelerates-colorado, January 13, 2012 – 5:09pm
