GM’s Schizophrenia: Europe vs America
Here’s an interesting bit of trivia: ‘General Motors is one of the leading users of renewable energy in the North American manufacturing sector, with renewable energy sources representing about 2 percent of its energy use.‘
So why is GM reducing the energy consumed in its factories and not its cars?
A possible answer could be found in Geneva, where GM unveiled the Corsa OPC, a small sports coupe with distinguishing fuel economy. It’s fast, it’s efficient, and it has no future in the U.S. because our car market is so different than that of Europe that GM is not even bothering to introduce the car here.
The Washington Post points this out in their article “Why You Can’t Buy This Car“, which discusses the dual personalities the car manufacturing company indulges on either side of the Atlantic. The primary differences are gas prices (we pay $2.50 versus costs upward of $5/gallon for gasoline in Europe) and our thirst for all things huge - cars, SUVs, and trucks.
There is also the issue of politics. Certainly one thing to keep your eye on this Congress is the push on CAFE standards, which is causing some of the big guys to throw their weight around on Capitol Hill.
March 16th, 2007 at 2:43 pm
How can it be that GM is a leader if only 2 percent of its energy use is represented by renewable energy sources? Is that because GM is so huge and uses so much energy? I ask because I know of many businesses that depend far more on renewable energy sources.