The U.S. Department of Energy, under its Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing Incentive Program (a $25 billion program), announced yesterday that Ford would be one of the many companies being granted a low-interest loan. Ford, who had applied for $11 billion, has been granted $5.9 billion in financing and is planning to use these funds to retool its U.S. plants to produce fuel-efficient vehicles and to meet new fuel economy deadlines, among other things.
 
The DoE has also approved Tesla Motors for the loan and has granted it $465 million which it will use for a powertrain manufacturing plant and for the production engineering and assembly of its all-electric family sedan, the Model S. Tesla states that their partnership with the DoE is to “accelerate the production of affordable, fuel-efficient electric vehicles”. While Ford and Tesla have already been approved for the loan, Nissan has announced that they have been conditionally approved by the DoE for a loan of $1.6 billion to modify its Smyrna, Tennessee manufacturing plant to produce zero-emissions vehicles.
 
To read the press releases of Ford, Nissan, and Tesla, click on the links below.

+ Ford: News and Announcements: Press Release
+ Nissan: Corporate: Corporate News
+ Tesla Motors: Media: Press Room