Car Throttle

The most recent report about Fisker was right – the company is coming out with a low-cost plug-in hybrid and has received a lon from the Department of Energy to do it. Not only did Fisker get the loan, but the awarded amount is actually larger than Tesla’s. What a surprise!

Part of that has to do with the fact that Tesla’s first vehicle, the Roadster, is already out and developed. That enabled the entirety of Tesla’s request to go towards the design and development of the Model S. Fisker’s loan totals $528.7 million and is intended for two model lines. The first part is $169.3 million for “engineering integration costs” on the Karma. The second stage is a $359.36 million loan for the development of Fisker’s low-cost plug-in, Project NINA.

Fisker estimates the loan guarantee will “save or create” 5,000 jobs, from suppliers working on the Karma and the manufacturing of the plug-in hybrid in the United States. As for sales of the new model? Fisker is estimating 75,000-100,000 each year of beginning in late 2012, at a price of $39,900 after U.S tax credits.

The curiously named Project NINA gets itss inspiration from Christopher Columbus’ ship, in what Fisker says is “symbolic of the automobile industry’s transition from old world to new.”

This is huge – last year, it was unlikely that Tesla or Fisker would be getting these loans. What seemingly was a fund setup to help the Big Three turned out to provide funds to some of the startup companies as well. It provides a level playing field and lets the two offer their approaches as to the future of transportation.

The large amount of money ensures they will be well-funded. It seems as if Tesla and Fisker are really making this happen – proving that a new car company can be created. We’ll see how it all works out in the end, but I can’t wait to hear more about Project NINA.