Electric car boom in Ind. city goes bust

(CBS News) ELKHART, Ind. - Elkhart, Indiana lost jobs faster than any other city in the country in 2009. Both Democrats and Republicans promised to re-energize manufacturing in the city, backing a new electric car plant. But as CBS News investigated, instead of a boom, things went bust.

With unemployment peaking above 20 percent, Elkhart, Indiana was at the white-hot center of the economic meltdown, and a natural launch point for President Obama's electric vehicle initiative.

" So that's why I'm here today," the president said three years ago. "To announce $2.4 billion in highly competitive grants."

Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels was also on board in convincing Norwegian company Think Global to open a plant in Elkhart to build Think City electric cars with a sticker price of about $42,000.

As incentive, the federal government offered Think City $17 million in stimulus tax credits.

Dorinda Heiden-Guss heads up the local economic development effort. "We were excited," she said. "We were invigorated at a very devastating time."

But it turns out the company had a checkered track record, including three previous bankruptcies. We recently visited Think City's Indiana plant, and here's what we found: a largely empty warehouse.

Everybody hoped that by this time there would be more than 400 workers inside a bustling plant. Instead, today, there are just two workers at Think City. Rodney and Josh are slowly finishing assembly on a few dozen 2011 models shipped in from Norway.

We were able to drive a Think City car around the empty space where investors once envisioned an assembly line churning out 20,000 vehicles a year.

Now in its fourth bankruptcy, Think Global has been bought by a Russian investor who didn't return our calls.

Think's woes caused one of its investors, Ener1, to file for bankruptcy in January. Ener1 spent a $55 million federal grant to make batteries at this factory in Indianapolis for Think City cars.

So what happened? "The market has not been what everybody anticipated it to be with electric vehicles," said Heiden-Guss.

Indiana had hoped to become the electric car capital. What would Heiden-Guss say about that today? "You can hope for a lot of things, she said. "What reality is is something different oftentimes."

On the bright side, Elkhart's jobless rate is less than half what it was before Think City came to town. But that's due to an uptick in other manufacturing after electric cars ran out of juice.

[hankgagnon]

This has happen because the oil companies and the American Petroleum institute are quietly funding small groups of Republican Frauds filing law suits against anyone trying to put charging stations in with frivolous lawsuits. Putting halt, or slowing down charging station installations.

[Tomgcbs]

There were electric cars on the roads in early 1900's but then big oil convinced people that it was better to run the cars on gasoline and they will NEVER let it go back to electric.
There's been many diff options to run a engine on other form of energy but behind the scenes big oil block/kills them all to keep up our addicted like crack to their gasoline!

[ANTI_LEFT]

The way you put your thoughts into words in this comment would lead me to believe you are a Liberal on Crack. That cannot be a good mixture at all. I wonder if Obummer realizes where the jet fuel for Airforce One comes from. Oh Stupid me, he knows. Venezuela right? Cant have jobs in the energy sector in the United States but can buy it from somewhere else and leave your hypocrite carbon foot print all over the world.

[youtubeyguy]

anti_left... you sound like a conservative on crack. how's that? does that make you feel any better? Obummer.... wow. Were you spoon fed this by Rush or one of the pathetic talking heads on fox news? please go read a book and lean. take the time to actually think for yourself. now, i may think that Tomgcbs is a bit over the top with his "oil companies want to keep us all addicted to gasoline..."
but he ACTUALLY is right in tat electric cars were invented and "big oil" has kept progress down in terms of alternative energy. Just look at how many fuel cell battery patents that the 'big oil' bought out in the last four decades and yet we have seen no progress on this matter (electric cars).

If anyone has a brain (aparently 'anti-left' does not), please watch the movie "Who Killed the Electric Car?" This is a great movie that explains much of our lack of electric vehicles today and it does NOT blame the GOP or the left exclusively. There is blame to go around to all including us (the customers). It's a smart and informative movie to all (except for 'anti_left' who just watches Fox News, listens to right wing radio, and takes his orders on how to think from people who are experts at nothing accept on how to attain political power).

[ANTI_LEFT]

Ah gee youtubeyguy you almost hurt my feelings. But since you couldn't come up with anything better than slamming fox news and Rush as do most of you left wing crack heads, you didnt quite get it done. As far as being spoon fed, look in the mirror. You listen to the how did you say, pathetic talking heads on CBS, ABC, CNN, MSNBC and take every last word from their program as the trueth. News flash, it's far from it. You get bent out of shape if I call your community organizer Obummer but think nothing of calling our next president Robme. You are a typical left wing hypocrite that burns gasoline but dont want to drill here, use electricity but want to shut down the coal mines and then whine when someone else has got more than you. If the big oil companies are buying up patents on electric technology, it means the guy that came up with it took the money and ran. A guy that people like you cant stand because they got rich. Then you are consumed by hatred and the only solution you can come up with is to raise this guys taxes so you can have some of what he got for nothing, your pathetic. Vote for Obummer again and by some slim chance he actually gets re-elected I'll meet you back here in four years so you can tell me what an idiot you were for following this idiot down the path of a great nations destruction. Good luck, your going to need it.

[dstiebs1]

Make cars that run on Natural gas. Oh, that's right, they do! Invest in Natural Gas.

[ANTI_LEFT]

That requires enough drilling in these United States to supply the demand of these vehicles, our homes and power plants that have swithced over to make electricity. Won't happen as long as Obummer or any other Lib is in the oval office. Could bring it in by pipeline from Canada, but that isn't going to happen for the same obvious reasons.

[Rolyat136]

Talk about "off-shoring" (investing in other national economies)
$2.4 billion to a Norwegian car manufacturer, results in how much spent in the U.S. economy for an Indiana warehouse where cars, built by workers in Norway, can be driven around?

At least, when Prior Industrial Policy promises were made, making the "trains run on time" meant making Italian, not Norwegian, trains keep to the schedule.

[JWnTX]

Only a lib would think that by virtue of getting before a large audience and extolling the virtue of "green technology," that Americans would rush out to buy unproven, expensive technology that defies all common sense. But they do just that, so they assume everyone else is just as daft and desperate to be viewed as a hipster. Thankfully, most Americans are smarter.

[andacar]

You're right JW! Americans know better than to go out and buy one of those newfangled gas powered cars. After all, they were invented by a German! Probably for Hitler! What do they know? I hear they work off of explosions, which defies all common sense. Back to horses, like in the good old days when we knew what America stood for!

[ANTI_LEFT]

Green technology? What is most laughable about these electric cars is the fact that most libs dont have a clue where the juice comes from to operate these things or their computers. Get rid of mining and drilling they say. Okay. You cant build wind turbines, solar panels or anything else without mining or drilling. How much plastic does one of those "Green" cars have in it? How many computers get built so Libs can spew their blather? None without drilling. You have to have concrete to erect a wind turbine, good luck with that without mining. 2.4 billion would've went along way towards keeping people employed in these industries, but that would make too much sense.

[John_Swift]

As if conservatives had never made a stupid investment decision.

[Despiser2500]

How much proof does one need to come to the conclusion that Liberalism is an actual mental disorder. Its the only thing that can make ANY sense out any of them... Nobody is THAT dumb...

[_Thomas_Smith_]

Just a bit more than necessary to show that so of the "conservatives" are dangerously insane... And by your comment, apparently at least someone is THAT dumb...

[realtimecoffee]

What the heck are "highly competitive grants"?

[Skipper50]

Where do I go to get my money back?

[segesta77]

Hey, maybe the car was $42,000 but I bet it would be great for sloshing through Midwestern winters (eyes rolling).

[HoosierEVdriver]

I'm sure you've heard of a 'sticker price'? I didn't pay anywhere near $42K, and yes, it 'sloshed' through the midwest winter just fine, thanks very much, particularly as I drive past all the gas stations.

[pcfpgarty]

The experience with Think Cars will hurt the chances of other potential products and manufacturing from getting the investment they need because investors will hold up that failure as an example of why people should not invest in ventures . Especially discouraging when this country needs investment so very badly. By the way we have the technology right in this U.S.of A.to build exactly that , which just failed in Indiana and would sell for less than $15,000.00. It can be done without inviting a foreign company to the table .

[sallychicago]

Not necessarily. Nissan makes the Leaf, and we have them in Chicago, but they are part of a rental car fleet of cars. Actually, I think the electric car needs to be abandoned because the hybrids do just as good a job and are gas efficient. We'll never ever be gas-independent. Ever.

[JAMCL3]

The most expensive part of the Think City EV is the American designed and manufactured battery from Ener Del, spun out of Delphi. It is the only EV sold in the USA that has a 100% USA battery. That is why my wife and I each own one. That is why we are completely independent of carcinogenic gasoline now. And being a Norwegian design, it handles winter very well.

The reason Think went bankrupt was pretty much the same reason Chrysler and GM did, the Great Recession. Only Think lasted longer and needed no help getting out of bankruptcy, there was actually a bidding war between the Turks and Russians for Think. Word is the four door model is close to production.