GM to open Shanghai alternative fuel research center
GM to open Shanghai alternative fuel research center
October 29, 2007
General Motors Corp. said it plans to set up an alternative fuel research center in Shanghai for $250 million.
Speaking at a news conference in Beijing today, GM Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Rick Wagoner said China has the “potential to become a leader in the adoption of alternative propulsion systems,” according to published reports.
Officials at GM said construction of the first phase of the General Motors Center for Advanced Science and Research in Shanghai is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2008. The facility would be located at GM’s China headquarters in Shanghai.
The second initiative is the establishment of the China Automotive Energy Research Center (CAERC), a collaborative effort with Beijing’s Tsinghua University and GM’s strategic partner in China, Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp Group (SAIC).
GM and SAIC will jointly provide a five-year $5-million grant to Tsinghua University to establish the partnership.
“The new GM Center for Advanced Science and Research will support China as it undertakes one of the most rapid technological transformations in world history,” Wagoner said in a statement. “It is designed to bring together various resources, including SAIC’s new Energy Unit, to accelerate research in the areas of energy-efficient and environmentally friendly automotive technologies, as well as alternative fuel pathways that are socially responsible, economically viable, environmentally sustainable, and technologically feasible.”
GM also unveiled five vehicles that use alternative energy sources at an exhibition in China this week, according to a statement.
The Detroit automaker said the Chevrolet Equinox fuel-cell electric car and the Saab 9-3 BioPower ethanol-power vehicle were among the vehicles that will be on display through Wednesday in China.
