Phoenix CEO Says Fledgling EV Maker Not Hurt By Vehicle Supplier Bankruptcy

By John O'Dell, Senior Editor

Word that ailing South Korean SUV manufacturer SsangYong Motor has filed for bankruptcy protection in a Seoul court got us wondering how that might affect SsangYong's biggest U.S. customer, electric vehicle maker Phoenix Motorcars.

Phoenix buys its rolling stock - sporty pickups (right) and sport utility vehicles (below) - from SaangYong and then adds the electric drive systems when the vehicles arrive at Phoenix' assembly plant in Southern California..

If the South Korean company stopped making vehicles, it would be bad news for Phoenix.

But the SsangYong bankkruptcy filling sought protection from creditors, not liquidation of the company, and Dan Elliott, Phoenix' chief executive, says that as far as he knows, it will be business as usual.

Phoenix imported 200 SsangYong trucks in the fourth quarter last year and Elliott said he expects the level of business with SsangYong to remain about the same in the first quarter this year.

(EV sales to the public utilities and government agencies required to add alternative technology vehicles to their fleets are a major source of business for Phoneix and aren't affected much by the economic crisis that has made the retail car sales market so ugly.)

Phoenix isn't out of the woods, though.

SsangYong said in a statement that it faces a serious liquidity crisis because of slumping demand for its vehicles in its Asian markets, and has had trouble raising needed funds because of the global credit crunch.

The company also said that its chief executive had stepped down because of changes within the operating structure of its majority owner, China's Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. (SAIC), and that its president had resigned as well - for those famous "personal" reasons.

The automaker told the bankruptcy court that it intends to slash its payroll by 30 percent through mandatory pay cuts over the next two years and that it also intends to reduce total employment through a voluntary retirement program. SsangYong also said it intends to cease "welfare support" for its staff,

Meantime, Elliott said Phoenix is still receiving vehicles it had ordered from SsangYong and that he and he and the rest of the crew at Phoenix "don't really know much yet. We're just watching to see how it turns out."

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John O'Dell January 9, 2009, 3:48 PM

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Alternative Fuels, Phoenix Motorcars, Plug-ins and Electric

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EV, Phoenix Motorcars, SAIC, SsangYong Automotive