( MA ) - Carmakers have been moving more of their design and construction projects in-house in recent times and this dwindling of contracts is pushing independent firms like Pininfarina to the brink of bankruptcy, forcing them to diverge into new niches. One of the areas Pininfarina is looking at is the growing electric vehicle market.
Already we've seen niche carmakers like Fisker reveal plans to build a limited run of plug-in hybrid models and now Pininfarina has confirmed it will launch an all-new electric model in 2010 for sale in Europe, the U.S. and Japan, reports Automotive News.The design house has formed a joint-venture with French battery specialist Vincent Bollore, and will invest about €150 million over the next couple of years to build up to 15,000 electric cars a year. Details on the new model are scarce but some of the features from Pininfarina's recent Sintesi Concept (pictured) are expected to make it to the production car.
Other projects Pininfarina will be responsible for include the Alfa Romeo Brera and Spider, Focus Coupe Cabriolet and Colt CZC.