Cash advance

The US Administration is to provide $8bn (£4.9bn) in loans that will allow selected auto makers to develop fuel-saving products.

Ford will receive $5.9bn to help convert two truck plants to the production of cars. Ford will also be raising the fuel efficiency of more than a dozen of its models, including the Focus, Escape, Taurus and F-150

For its part, Nissan will use its $1.6bn loan to produce electric cars and battery packs at its manufacturing complex in Smyrna, Tennessee. The loan will aid in the construction of a new battery plant and modifications to the existing assembly facility.

Nissan aims to manufacture an all-electric car, and will offer electric vehicles to fleet and retail customers. It plans to ramp up production capacity in Smyrna to 150,000 vehicles annually. 

Tesla Motors will use its $465m loan to finance a manufacturing facility for its Tesla Model S sedan. The Model S is expected to be roughly $50,000 cheaper than Tesla’s first vehicle, the Roadster. Production of the Model S will begin in 2011 and ramp up to 20,000 vehicles per year by the end of 2013.