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THINK CONTINUES GLOBAL EXPANSION WITH ANNOUNCEMENT OF NEW U.S. ASSEMBLY FACILITY
OSLO, Norway, 5 January 2010
- Elkhart County, Indiana selected as location of North American production facility
- Joint announcement by THINK and Governor of Indiana Mitch Daniels today
- Start of production slated for 2011
- $43.5 million investment in Indiana by THINK, creating up to 400 jobs by 2013
THINK, the Scandinavian electric vehicle (EV) maker, today announces plans to start production in Elkhart County, Indiana and the launch of the THINK City into the North American market.
The pioneering global manufacturer of electric vehicles plans to begin selling the THINK City, one of the world's first highway-capable urban EVs, in
the U.S. later this year. The company plans to invest $43.5 million in building improvements and equipment in Elkhart County, and the plant could begin assembling vehicles in early 2011.
THINK's investments in Elkhart County will support manufacturing capacity for more than 20,000 vehicles a year. The company started delivering the
latest generation of its THINK City model to customers in Europe last month.
The THINK City is a purpose-built, all-electric car designed for urban environments. It can travel at highway speeds for more than 100 miles on a single
charge with zero local emissions. It is the world's first EV to be granted certification with the European CE conformity mark and EU homologation requirements (M1 certificate). To achieve these
exacting standards, the THINK City has been through extensive testing and validation and several hundred computer simulations and correlations.
European production of the THINK City is already underway in Finland with manufacturing partner Valmet Automotive, which also assembles the
Porsche Boxster and Cayman models for Porsche AG. Production will continue at Valmet Automotive to support European market demand, where sales have begun in selected key EV markets such as Austria,
Denmark, The Netherlands, Norway, Spain and Sweden.
THINK CEO Richard Canny, said: "We are extremely pleased to announce plans for a second THINK production location today. Things are moving very
swiftly for the company in Europe following the start of production in Finland and the subsequent start of sales at the end of last year. Now its time for us to do the same in the North American market – and
there's no better place to start than Indiana."
He continued: "Indiana is quickly becoming an international leader in advanced, clean technology manufacturing. It's an industry with a future, and
EV's are right in the center of the convergence of where the auto and energy sectors are heading. We're proud to be part of this effort to reinvent and reinvest in U.S. auto manufacturing."
THINK is joining Indianapolis-based lithium-ion battery maker, EnerDel in choosing Indiana for a North American manufacturing location. Ener1, the
parent company of Enerdel, is a 31% equity stakeholder in THINK. In addition to incentives provided by the State of Indiana and Elkhart County, THINK plans to utilize funding from the U.S.
Department of Energy ATVM loan program to establish its new production facility.
Think Global
Think designs, develops, manufactures and markets
environmentally friendly vehicles and technologies. The company has more than 17 years of experience in developing and producing electric vehicles and there are about 1,200 vehicles driving on Norwegian
roads today. The latest TH!NK city is the fifth-generation electric vehicle that has been produced in Norway. Series production of the newly designed TH!NK city car started late last year and
the first cars will be delivered to Norwegian customers. The capacity of its first assembly plant in Aurskog, outside Oslo, is presently being increased to 10,000 cars per year. Think expects to
be producing at full capacity sometime during 2009. Enthusiastic owners with the vision and resources want to make Think the "car company of the 21st century."
About Kleiner Perkins Caulfield & Byers
Kleiner Perkins Caulfield & Byers is leading the venture community to invest in and accelerate Green technology solutions and policy innovations. The firm has been active in Greentech initiatives
since 1999. KPCB has committed more than $200 million to ventures across the globe that offer green technology products and services, such as better biofuels, renewable energy generation, cleaner
transportation, improved energy storage, and higher energy efficiency technologies. More than half the firm's investing professionals are involved in Greentech investments.
Since its founding in 1972, KPCB has backed entrepreneurs in over 475 ventures, including AOL, Amazon.com, Citrix, Compaq Computer, Electronic Arts, Genentech, Genomic Health, Google, Intuit,
Juniper Networks, Netscape, Lotus, Sun Microsystems and Symantec. More than 150 of the firm's portfolio companies have gone public. The firm has offices in Menlo Park, California, Beijing, China and Shanghai, China.
About Rockport Capital
RockPort Capital Partners, founded in 2000, is one of the pioneering Cleantech/Greentech VC funds and focuses exclusively on the Energy and Power,
Advanced Materials and Process and Prevention technology sectors. With offices in Boston, MA and Menlo Park, CA, Rockport has invested, to date, over $300M in more than 40 portfolio companies
with breakthrough technologies that deliver significant economic value to large potential markets.
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