General Motors Corp. (GM) Chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner and SAIC Motor Corp. Ltd. (SAIC Motor) Chairman Hu Maoyuan signed a Memorandum of Understanding today in Shanghai to explore opportunities for the local application and production of hybrid vehicles in China. The two partners will explore the expansion of the current GM-Allison-SAIC hybrid demo bus program announced last October to a larger bus fleet for Shanghai’s mass transportation system in advance of the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai.
GM and SAIC will also pursue passenger car hybrid options as well as other clean-energy vehicle applications including hydrogen fuel cell technologies for China’s relevant vehicle platforms. The goal is to have available a number of different models designed to meet the different needs of China’s consumers. The introduction of locally manufactured vehicles is targeted to be available beginning in 2008.
According to Rick Wagoner, the two companies have the technical advantage of their Pan Asia Technical Automotive Center (PATAC) joint venture in Shanghai. The well-established, eight-year-old local engineering and design center will be responsible for hybrid system application engineering and integration in vehicles.
PATAC’s designers, engineers and technicians will be involved in a number of hybrid programs applicable to vehicles manufactured by Shanghai GM. They will build complete demonstration vehicles, assessing various hybrid concepts for near-term production and developing local competency in regenerative braking, electric power steering and high-voltage battery systems.
Many of these technologies may have direct application in the development of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, which both GM and SAIC believe is the ultimate solution to taking the motor vehicle out of the environmental equation, guaranteeing energy security and enabling a greater number of people to have access to environmentally clean personal transportation.
“To make this happen, we need to bring down costs and build the necessary infrastructure — and the best way to do that is by business and government working together,” Wagoner said.
Last month, Volkswagen A.G. (VOWG.DE), GM’s main Chinese rival, announced plans to begin making hybrids by 2008 with Shanghai Automotive — SAIC Motor’s parent.
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