The 2010 North American International Auto Show will include a
37,000-square-foot exhibit dedicated to electric vehicles, organizers
announced Thursday.
Called Electric Avenue, the exhibit on the main floor at Detroit’s
Cobo Center will include about 20 vehicles from both conventional
automakers and startup companies, according to a statement.
The electric-minded presentation will illustrate “the long-term
viability of the auto industry using a subject that is top of mind
globally these days,” said Doug Fox, chairman of the auto show, in a
statement.
The auto show, scheduled for Jan. 11-24, will also include a reprise of
last year’s EcoXperience exhibit, which allowed attendees to drive a
variety of electric vehicles around a landscaped quarter-mile track in
Cobo’s basement.
In an interview with Crain’s, Fox said the exhibit will primarily
feature entrepreneurs because most conventional automakers are
presenting electric vehicles at their own booths. Companies
exhibiting vehicles at Electric Avenue will include China-based BYD
Auto, San Jose-based Green Vehicles Inc. and Spokane, Wash.-based
Commuter Cars Corp., the maker of the all-electric Tango
two-seater, he said.
That exhibit will again be sponsored by the Michigan Economic
Development Corp.
Sponsoring Electric Avenue is Midland-based Dow Chemical Co.,
which is developing batteries for electric vehicles.
A joint venture between Dow and Korean battery-maker Kokam
Engineering Co. Ltd. received a $161 million federal grant this
summer. Construction has begun on an 800,000-square-foot
development and manufacturing facility in Midland, which is slated to
cost about $665 million.
Source: Crain Communications Inc.
Author: Gabe Nelson