Big 3 Are Winners In $175 Million DOE Grants
By Danny King August 15, 2011
General Motors, Chrysler and Ford were among the three-dozen entities that received a combined $175 million in U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) grants to be used to further develop technology aimed at boosting light-duty vehicle fuel economy by more than 75 percent over the next 14 years. Electric-motor maker UQM technologies, electric-drive powertrain maker Azure Dynamics, lithium-ion battery maker A123 Systems and tire makers Cooper and Goodyear also received DOE funding, which, combined with private sources will pay for more than $300 million in projects. The largest single grant - $26.4 million - was awarded to Phoenix-based Electric Transportation Engineering Corp. (eTec), for a test of early production light- and heavy-duty vehicles using a variety of propulsion systems and fuels. The company is owned by electric-vehicle charging infrastructure developer ECOtality. In 2009, ECOtality was awarded a $99.8 million DOE grant for its ongoing EV Project that involves deploying about 14,000 EV chargers across 18 metropolitan areas.
GM received two grants totaling $14 million, making it the second largest recipient of government funds in this round of grants. Of the total, $8 million will be used to develop a system that converts waste heat from vehicle engines into electric power that could be used to run accessory equipment or help recharge hybrid vehicle's batteries. Another $6 million will be used to make high-performance power inverters used in electric-vehicle traction motors. Chrysler received $10 million to develop materials that will help cut the weight of certain vehicle components by as much as 50 percent. Ford received a combined $2.7 million for projects related to the development of an oil that better reduces engine friction and the creation of a lower-emission fuel technology.
The DOE announced the grants less than two weeks after the Obama Administration reached a deal with automakers to establish a 54.5 mile-per-gallon Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standard for passenger vehicles in 2025. That would be equal to an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) "window sticker" fuel economy rating of about 40 mpg, or about 78 percent more than the 22.3 miles per gallon fleetwide average for 2010 model year vehicles, according to the EPA. Regulators still are preparing the draft of proposed rules for implementing the 2016-2025 CAFE standards and are expected to publish them for public comment by the end of September. "The Department of Energy is investing in new advanced technologies that will significantly improve vehicle fuel economy, save consumers money, and create skilled jobs for Americans," said U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu in announcing the new grants. "Investments in the next generation of autos will strengthen our economy and lead to a more fuel-efficient, clean energy future."
Battery Tech Grant Focus
Among advanced-technology companies that also received grants, A123 and UQM each received $3 million -- A123 to create a manufacturing process that cuts the cost of lithium-ion batteries for battery-electric (BEV) and plug-in hybrid-electric (PHEV) vehicles, and UQM to develop electric motors that don't require rare-earth metals for use with BEVs as well as hybrid-electric vehicles. Azure Dynamics, whose work includes the conversion of Ford F-150 pickup trucks to PHEVs, will get $5.4 million to develop an inverter (which converts a direct current into an alternating current) that will improve efficiency and cut the cost of electric-drive powertrains. Tire-makers Cooper and Goodyear were each awarded $1.5 million for development of tire technology that will help improve fuel efficiency for private and commercial vehicles.
Earlier this month, President Obama announced the first-ever fuel-economy standards for work trucks, buses and other heavy-duty vehicles. The rules, which cover the 2014-2018 model years, require big-rigs to achieve up to a 20 percent reduction in fuel consumption and greenhouse-gas emissions by model year 2018, heavy-duty pickups and vans up to a 15 percent reduction, and vocational vehicles – including delivery trucks, buses and garbage trucks – up to a 10 percent reduction.
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