GM is pinning their hopes on next generation electric and hybrid vehicles.

General Motors (GM) announced Tuesday that the company is investing $246 million to make electric motors for it’s next-generation hybrid and electric vehicles in their Baltimore area transmission plant.

The plant will be the first electric motor manufacturing facility in the U.S. operated by a major automaker, according to GM’s press release.

“Electric motors are driving the next wave of automotive growth,” said Tom Stephens, GM’s vice president for global vehicle operations.  “The expansion of the Baltimore plant will generate a significant influx of money and jobs into the greater Baltimore area, creating U.S.-based manufacturing jobs.”

The plant, which opened in 2000, will employ nearly 400 people.

“Electric motors are the engines of the future,” Stephens said.  “By designing and manufacturing electric motors in-house at Baltimore Transmission, we can more efficiently control the design, materials and production processes. It will also enable us to lower costs and improve performance, quality, reliability, and manufacturability of the electric motors we use in our vehicles.”

The investment will be underwritten in part by a $105 million grant awarded to GM last year by the U.S. Department of Energy.

“In the future, electric motors might become as important to GM as engines are now,” said Stephens. “Our goal is simply to establish GM as a leader in automotive electric motors,” he said.

Nissan Motor Company has announced that their Oppama Plant in Japan will begin manufacturing electric vehicles (EV’s) in the fall of 2010.

The company plans to mass-produce the EV’s by 2012, but will begin the intial phase with the production of 50,000 vehicles next year.

Nissan also reported a full-year net loss of $1.4 billion for 2008, with a net loss of $2.8 billion in the fourth quarter alone. The Japanese automaker has seen U.S. sales plummet 35 percent this year.

The company says that it’s committed to becoming a global leader in zero-emission vehicles, and that it will also seek to build components and have some of the EV production done overseas.

With more than 200,000 vehicles, the USPS can make a significant impact if they were to revamp their fleet.

With an estimated 219,000 service vehicles, the United State Postal Service operates the largest civilian fleet in the country. Since the vast majority of these vehicles are powered by gasoline, rising gas prices are having a huge impact on operating costs.

According to the New York Times, every 1-cent increase in the price of a gallon of gas costs the USPS $8 million. In 2007, the fleet drank $1.7 billion in gasoline. This year costs are projected to go up by $600 million, giving the USPS the motivation to find alternatives.

President Obama has an idea to reduce dependence on gasoline. His energy plan calls for putting a million electric cars on American roads over the next six years. This gives Ruth Y. Goldway, a member of the United States Postal Regulatory Commission, an idea.

Goldway writes, “Converting just its 142,000 standard delivery trucks would reduce gasoline consumption by up to 68 million gallons a year and save the Postal Service millions of dollars. Delivery vehicles could be powered by electricity from solar panels installed on the roofs of mail sorting centers and local post offices — a self-sufficient system. You could plug in your own electric car there while you drop off parcels and buy stamps.“

She also points out that by converting at least a chunk of the USPS fleet, green jobs would be created across the country. Times are tough and the recession is taking a toll on virtually everyone. Could electric postal vehicles be just what the country needs?

The USPS already had one failed attempt at reducing dependence on gasoline. Between 1999 and 2005, it purchased more than 30,000 ethanol-capable trucks and minivans. The vehicles had larger engines than the vehicles they replaced and got as much as 29 percent fewer miles per gallon. Since corn-based fuel is not readily available in many areas, the USPS powered less than 1,000 of the vehicles with ethanol.

The result? The U.S. Postal Service increased its gasoline consumption by more than 1.5 million gallons after purchasing the ethanol-capable vehicles.

The USPS is deploying hydrogen-powered Chevrolet Equinox fuel cell vehicles in partnership with GM.

Ready to try again, the USPS is now testing a new hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. In July, General Motors provided the agency with the Chevrolet Equinox fuel cell vehicle. This fourth-generation vehicle uses no petroleum-based fuel.

The USPS entered an agreement with General Motors to participate in a two-year trial of the fuel cell vehicles.

Richard Maher, a USPS spokesperson in Irvine, Calif. told Government Executive, “The carriers like it a lot. It’s very comfortable.” He also said the vehicle is extremely quiet and has smooth acceleration.

This is not the first time the USPS has tested Chevrolet’s hydrogen cell vehicles. Maher said the previous prototype was rejected because it was smaller and quieter than the current Equinox model. Its small size restricted the amount of mail that could be carried on routes and it was a little too quiet, often startling pedestrians.

General Motors hopes to generate consumer interest as the hydrogen fuel cell vehicles hit the road to deliver the mail.