Archive for the ‘V-Vehicle Co.’ Category

It's good news/bad news day for T. Boone Pickens. On the one hand, his push for natural gas vehicles seems to be gaining traction in D.C. On the other, his new V-Vehicle Company in Monroe, Louisiana is about to get a little competition from two doors down. Chinese exile Yang Rong--former head of Brilliance China Automotive Holdings Ltd. and formerly one of China's three richest men--is setting up shop in Alabama to produce clean-tech vehicles. No word on where the factory will be located or even what form these vehicles will take, but they'll supposedly be for sale across the U.S. Your move, Pickens. [Reuters via BusinessInsider]

Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal has announced that San Diego-based V-Vehicle will create 1,400 new jobs and assemble an all-new vehicle in the state. This follows days of speculation about a significant auto assembly plant announcement in Monroe, in the northern portion of Louisiana.

VVC, as the company is also called, "wants to reestablish American leadership in the global automotive industry," according to a Louisiana Economic Development (LED) info-sheet.

V-Vehicle was founded by ex Oracle Corp. executive VP Frank Varasano and is definitely not struggling to gather funds; it's being financed by well-known California venture...

After weeks of mystery and speculation, today V-Vehicle Company (VVC), a San Diego firm backed by oil man turned environmentalist T. Boone Pickens finally revealed that it's the manufacturer setting up shop in Monroe, Louisiana to build a range of high-efficiency combustion-engine cars.

Earlier reports and rumors had a range of electric or hybrid cars being built at the former plant of industry supplier Guide. Instead, 1,400 jobs will be created to build regular gasoline-powered cars that focus on high mileage, reports local Monroe newspaper The News Star.

It's a bizarre announcement in the midst of the current economic and automotive...