General Motors Seeks Approval to Build Chevy Volt's Gasoline Engine in Flint
By Scott Doggett July 30, 2008
General Motors has applied for permission to build a factory in Flint, Michigan, with the intention of manufacturing the gasoline engines for the Chevrolet Volt there - if the city provides major tax incentives.
"We're still working on the business case for that," GM spokeswoman Sherry Arb told Green Car Advisor today. "Right now we're in the process of applying for tax incentives for a potential investment. That's simply part of the process to build a business case. We can't say categorically that it will be built there or it won't be at this point."
The city made famous by the 1989 documentary Roger & Me - in which director Michael Moore pursues then-GM CEO Roger Smith to confront him about the harm the company did to Flint with massive downsizing at a time when GM was making record profits - would retain 300 jobs if approval for the $326-million plant is granted, according to a report in The Flint Journal.
The application did not indicate how many jobs would be created if GM builds the factory.
The much-touted, battery-powered Volt, hailed for its potential to reduce America's reliance on fossil fuels, will be powered by an electric motor. As GM has stated many times, the car will run entirely on a battery charge for about 40 miles and use the onboard gasoline engine to generate electricity to charge the battery pack for longer trips.
The Volt will capture energy from braking, like a traditional hybrid, but without the gas engine the vehicle would have a short driving range between plug-in charges.
The new factory "will be used in the proposed battery-operated Chevy Volt and other GM passenger vehicles," according to the application. Flint officials have scheduled an Aug. 25 public hearing regarding the application and the tax breaks GM is seeking.
Scott Doggett, Contributor
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