The B2B platform for full-electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles: Industry News

The Californian car maker Fisker, known for its luxury advanced vehicle technology, has received the official approval from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for a conditional loan of 528,7 million dollar to develop an affordable, fuel-efficient plug-in hybrid electric car.

Fisker Automotive has been awarded a $528,7 million loan by the U.S government on Tuesday as part of the $25 billion DOE’s Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program created by the congress last November. The loan will be used to complete engineering integration work on Fisker’s first model Karma and to launch a second one. The majority of the low-interest financing will be put toward the development and production of this new project called NINA.

NINA - the family-oriented electric car of tomorrow

Project NINA – inspired by the ship belonging to explorer Christopher Columbus - is symbolic of the automobile industry’s transition from old world to new, states Fisker in its press release from Tuesday. With this in mind, the innovative start-up company is developing its second next-generation vehicle that will be family-oriented, user-friendly and a lower cost model starting at about $39,900 after tax credits. Using a similar plug-in hybrid technology as for the Karma, the new model can be plugged in at home to recharge the batteries and will be more fuel-efficient than normal hybrids.

According to Fisker, the funding will also create around 5000 new jobs at Fisker, as well as its suppliers and thousands more would result if the Project NINA goes into production in the States as expected. Moreover, sales predictions for the car of tomorrow with “radical styling and world-class quality” are over 100,000 units annually with a significant percentage that will be exported, helping to balance the US trade deficit.