Carbon Motors Files for $310 Million Federal Loan

CONNERSVILLE, Ind.--Today, on the heels of announcing jointly with Governor Mitch Daniels, before thousands of Americans, law enforcement officials, and local, state, and federal authorities, that it would locate its operation in Connersville, Indiana at a shuttered automotive plant, Carbon Motors Corporation filed its application to secure a loan with U.S. Department of Energy under the provisions of Section 136 of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (the “ATVMIP – Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Incentive Program”).

“Our nation’s law enforcement operations represent the largest, most visible government fleet and it is critical that our country lead by example. An average of 11 miles per gallon today for a fleet size of 450,000 vehicles is neither acceptable nor an efficient use of taxpayer dollars. Moreover, it is now almost 8 years after 9-11 and 4 years after Katrina, and it is critical that we provide our 840,000 law enforcement first responders the appropriate world-class equipment to secure our homeland against threats, both foreign and domestic,” said William Santana Li, chairman and chief executive officer, Carbon Motors Corporation.

The ATVMIP provides loans to new and established automakers to build more fuel-efficient vehicles. Created in 2007 and appropriated in September 2008, the $25 billion program aims to reduce America’s dangerous dependence on foreign oil and to create new American “green” jobs. The program is entirely unrelated to the stimulus package or the so-called “bailout” funds that legacy automakers have received in the past.

“Our application unequivocally meets or exceeds all technical, business, and legal requirements of the loan program and we believe the U.S. Department of Energy will quickly realize that it is in the national security and socioeconomic interests of the United States of America that the Carbon E7 vehicle be expedited to production; and given the significant cross-cabinet issues it addresses, it is only appropriate that it be backed by the federal authorities,” continued Li. “This new game-changing homeland security technology platform will have a positive effect on every town, city, county, state, airport, railroad, college campus, high value target, border, and port of the United States of America – a social benefit nationwide.”

The announcement that the Carbon E7 will be produced at a mothballed facility in Fayette County where unemployment levels have been hovering above 16% has not only reinvigorated thousands of workers that can trace back their regional industrial history to at least seven automakers of yesteryear, but has accelerated the environmental cleanup process for the brownfield facility.

“On behalf of Carbon Motors Corporation, I would like to publicly thank Governor Mitch Daniels, U.S. Senator Richard Lugar, U.S. Senator Evan Bayh, U.S. Representative Mike Pence, U.S. Representative André Carson, U.S. Representative Dan Burton, U.S. Representative Brad Ellsworth, and Mayor Leonard Urban for their unwavering bipartisan support of our efforts to create thousands of new American green jobs of national importance. We look forward to continuing to foster public/private sector collaboration at all levels. Expediting the approval of this loan is critical to (1) securing our homeland, (2) reducing our dependence on foreign oil and (3) creating long-term, sustainable jobs in every sense of the word. I believe President Obama had expressed a strong interest in ‘two-fers’ to drive efficiencies by tackling two major issues with a single resource. This one, Mr. President, is a ‘three-fer’ without a doubt sir,” remarked Li.

KEY FACTS

U.S. Department of Energy

• Energy – the nation’s law enforcement fleet consumes an estimated 1.5 billion gallons of gasoline and emits an estimated 14 million tons of CO2 annually; the Carbon E7 will cut that by up to 40% using clean diesel technology. Clean diesel is the technically correct short to medium-term solution for law enforcement operations due to its inherent performance, safety, operational, fuel efficiency, and durability characteristics.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security

• Homeland Security – over 7 years after 9-11 our country’s 840,000 law enforcement first responders continue to utilize inconsistently outfitted retail passenger vehicles meant for consumer use which do not provide the safety and performance capabilities appropriate to secure our homeland; over 3,000 law enforcement professionals across all 50 U.S. States at the local, state, and federal level helped design the Carbon E7 to specifically address their needs in the field.

U.S. Department of Justice

• Wasteful Government Spending – unlike the U.S. Department of Defense that oversees our military operations, the U.S. Department of Justice does not oversee the country’s over 19,000 law enforcement agencies which have very limited economies of scale in purchasing the equipment they need and are forced to utilize an outdated and wildly inefficient process to operate and service these vehicles in the field. Moreover, they experience unnecessarily high operating costs due to unacceptable fuel economy, poor durability, excessive service requirements, and critical safety concerns. The Carbon E7 will reduce the total life cycle costs as well as the overall taxpayer burden required to support our law enforcement operations, savings millions of dollars, and provide dramatic improvements in safety and effectiveness.

U.S. Department of Labor

• American Jobs – the over 450,000 law enforcement patrol vehicles that protect and secure our communities across America are not manufactured in the USA. The Carbon E7 will be produced in Connersville, Indiana in an economically depressed region and is projected to create 10,000 new direct and indirect American jobs and a $3 billion positive economic impact. Fayette County is presently experiencing a 16% unemployment rate.

U.S. Department of Transportation

• Safety – the 75,000 new vehicles purchased by law enforcement agencies annually begin as retail passenger cars never intended for law enforcement usage and are haphazardly upfitted with a plethora of equipment installed on an aftermarket basis. These modified vehicles are never subjected to crash tests required to meet the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) – a level of safety our families enjoy but is not provided to our women and men in uniform. The Carbon E7 will not only meet or exceed all FMVSS requirements with all law enforcement equipment efficiently integrated into the vehicle from the factory, but is additionally designed to meet a 75-mph rear impact crash.

About Carbon Motors Corporation

Carbon Motors Corporation is a bold, new homeland security company on a critical mission to design, develop, manufacture, distribute, service, and recycle, the world’s first purpose-built law enforcement patrol vehicle. Learn more at www.carbonmotors.com.