FREDERICK, Colo., 15 August 2005. UQM Technologies Inc. announced today that it has been awarded a contract by UT-Battelle, LLC, which operates the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), to develop an advanced traction motor for the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) FreedomCAR and Vehicle Technologies Program.
This research supports the goals of the FreedomCAR and Fuel Partnership, an industry/government research initiative focused on collaborative, pre-competitive, high-risk research to develop the component technologies necessary to provide a full range of affordable cars and light trucks, and the fuel infrastructure to support them, that will free the nation's personal transportation system from petroleum dependence and from harmful vehicle emissions, without sacrificing freedom of mobility and freedom of vehicle choice.
The goal of the FreedomCAR and Fuel Partnership is fundamental and dramatic -- the development of emission- and petroleum-free cars and light trucks. The Partnership is closely linked to the President's $1.7 billion initiative announced in January 2003, which addresses the key technology and infrastructure barriers of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.
This $293,000 Phase I development effort will be conducted over a nine month period with the DOE providing funding of $146,500, or 50 percent. The development effort will be focused on permanent magnet traction motors that are high performing and highly energy efficient using new and novel materials and configurations to reduce manufacturing costs.
"We are proud to have been selected to develop an advanced traction motor in response to the Request for Proposals issued by ORNL. We believe recent advancements in the performance and efficiency of our propulsion systems, together with the additional development activities envisioned under this program, will allow us to develop a traction motor that delivers expected performance within manufacturing cost targets," said William G. Rankin, UQM president and CEO.
UQM Technologies, Inc. is a developer and manufacturer of power dense, high efficiency electric motors, generators and power electronic controllers for the automotive, aerospace, medical, military and industrial markets. A major emphasis of the company is developing products for the alternative energy technologies sector including propulsion systems for electric, hybrid electric and fuel cell electric vehicles, 42-volt under-the-hood power accessories and other vehicle auxiliaries and distributed power generation applications. The company's headquarters, engineering and product development center, and motor manufacturing operation are located in Frederick, Colo. For more information, see www.uqm.com.
