ROCHESTER HILLS – General Motors Ventures made its sixth investment last week, investing $7.5 million into solar panel maker Sunlogics to build solar-powered electric charging stations for the Chevy Volt electric car.
GM Ventures, the venture capital arm of General Motors, has invested $45 million into a variety of start-ups, mostly in cleantech and vehicle electrification firms, such as Ann Arbor-based Sakti3. The VC firm has $100 million to invest in its first year, and more investments are in the pipeline.
“I don’t have a forecast for you, but this won’t be the last one this year,” says Jon Lauckner, president of GM Ventures.
Sunlogics develops and manufactures solar panels. The company will provide solar-powered electric charging stations for 3,000 Chevrolet dealerships. Sunlogics plans to leverage the investment from GM Ventures to create its headquarters and manufacturing facility in Rochester Hills, a move that will create 200 jobs within the next year.
GM Ventures is focusing on investing in four different categories, including clean-tech, vehicle electrification, infotainment and supply chain. All of its investments have fallen into the clean-tech and vehicle electrification sectors so far.
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