France not ready to invest in EV project

PARIS, FRANCE - France's strategic investment fund (FSI) is not yet ready to invest in manufacturer Heuliez's electric vehicle project as new owner Bernard Krief Consulting (BKC) has not met necessary guarantees, a fund spokesman said.

"At this stage, public money would not be protected," the spokesman for the fund, set up to help struggling businesses hit by the crisis, told Reuters.

It agreed in March to invest in niche car and equipment maker Heuliez, which builds the Tigra for General Motors unit Opel and is counting on a push toward electric vehicles for its future.

The spokesman said BKC had not given sufficient guarantees on the capital it would supply for the project and said a shareholders' meeting scheduled to launch the project could be canceled.

BKC president Louis Petiet was not immediately available for comment.

The FSI had planned to invest 10 million euros (US$14.9 million) in Heuliez's electric vehicle, alongside the region of Poitou-Charentes where the company is based which is set to invest 5 million.

BKC, the only interested candidate, was chosen in July to take over Heuliez.

Related News

The European Union

EU draft shows plan for more fixed-price electricity contracts

BRUSSELS - The European Union wants to expand the use of contracts that pay power plants a fixed price for electricity, a draft proposal showed, to shield European consumers from big price swings.

The European Commission pledged last year to reform the EU's electricity market rules, after record-high gas prices, caused by cuts to Russian flows, sent power prices soaring.

A draft of the EU executive's proposal, seen by Reuters on Tuesday and due to be published on Mar. 16, steered clear of the deep redesign of the electricity market that some member states have called for, suggesting instead limited changes to…

READ MORE
fusion reactor iter

Why the promise of nuclear fusion is no longer a pipe dream

READ MORE

schott-powers-german-plants-with-green-electricity

Schott Powers German Plants with Green Electricity

READ MORE

snow electricity

'Electricity out of essentially nothing': Invention creates power from falling snow

READ MORE

eu smart grid

EU Smart Meters Spur Growth in the Customer Analytics Market

READ MORE