Tweet21-09-2009 om 17:29 by Stafford Wadsworth

Some years ago (2005), an introduction was given at the Rhineland Automotive Workshop, held at Aachen’s institute for automotive engineering, which demonstrated that Aachen’s cutting-edge automotive engineering institute was far ahead of the rest of us in thinking about automotive futures.

I watched as Aachen Automotive Engineering’s Professor Henning Wallentowitz stepped forward, took a cell phone from his pocket and keyed in a number. Immediately, a car moved out of its space on the parking lot, described a semicircle and drew up in front of him and his companion. The car was driverless. Professor Wallentowitz and his companion got into the back seat of the car, closed the doors and were driven away in a still driverless vehicle.

Now (2009), an organization called the Der Kompetenzverbund Nord has now officially started its program at Jülich, the Research Center in the Aachen Region, the target of which is to develop batteries that will be able to power hybrid and electric cars in the future. Energy research too is based at Avantis between Heerlen and Aachen.

There are other anecdotes about the cars of the future, which demonstrate the automotive potential of the region. Apparently, The Dutch Prime Minister, Jan Peter Balkenende will be talking to the top of the Mitsubishi Corporation in Japan next month about keeping the NedCar plant in Born in South Limburg.

The Prime Minister will be presenting a package of proposals to the Japanese about the fact that NedCar could produce electric cars on a large scale. The importance of the mission to Japan is, according to Councilor Peter Meekels of Sittard-Geleen very considerable.

The continued existence of NedCar depends on the success of the meeting between Balkenende and Mitsubishi’s Osamu Masuko. Governor Leon Frissen of Limburg has made a particular point of the importance of this issue with the Prime Minister and is working on a lobby for NedCar. They want to stop the plant from closing down in 2012 when the contracts for the Colt and Outlander models come to an end.

Jos Hessels responsible for industry at the provincial government says that nobody has said that the next generation of cars will not be made at Born. PM Balkenende is not just going to talk about ordinary cars, but also about the development of electric cars.

Limburg hopes that Balkenende and the Japanese can get together on working between NedCar and Aachen’s RWTH University. The university wants to start developing the electric car from scratch, and NedCar could be used as the site for the new models. It would mean a new economic reality for Meuse-Rhine.

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