What the press is saying about petrol, LPG, diesel, crude oil, biofuel etc.
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$149 Million to build green Holden
24-12-2008 The Australian. Holden will receive $149 million from the federal government’s $1.3 billion green car innovation fund to produce a “green petrol-fueled car”.
Industry Minister Kim Carr said he expected the car to be "at least 20 per cent more fuel-efficient than other four-cylinder cars on the road today".
This seems to be another case of “hoping and wishful thinking”.
A spokesperson for Holden said the car's exact performance figures could not yet be released because it was still under development.
The car will be based on the Chevrolet Cruze, which in itself is a replacement for Daewoo's small car, currently sold here as the Holden Viva.
According to the government’s green vehicle guide, fuel consumption for the (manual) Viva is 7.4 l/100km compared to the Toyota Prius of 4.4 l/100km.
GM Holden will build the new car at its Elizabeth plant north of Adelaide alongside the Commodore and will require 500 to 600 existing (not new) employees.
We cannot help but wonder what these existing employees are currently doing. Perhaps another model will be canceled in the near future?
GM Holden Chairman and Managing Director, Mark Reuss said the program would be a major contributor to the economy, generating an estimated $70 million to $80 million in wages and $30 million in research and development.
If Holden is not employing any more workers, does this mean the 600 existing workers will get a $110,000 pay rise?
The Australian auto industry needs help. However, should our government give away our money from the green car innovation fund without setting any conditions? This is not an electric vehicle or a plug-in hybrid. It is not even a hybrid. It is just another small 4-cylinder petrol driven car. Hardly green or innovative.
GM Press release: http://www.holdencampaign.com.au/greatnews/ News Article
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