$6.5 billion Chinese hybrid-electric car plant for Mississippi up in the air

Might a $6.5 billion hybrid-electric car factory be coming to Mississippi? Depending on what happens with a lawsuit that has shone light on the previously unknown deal, we think it's a definite maybe. Or maybe not (c'mon, we're bloggers, not soothsayers). Apparently, quiet plans had been afoot to begin building on a 3,500 acre site this year that would have had hybrids rolling off the line as early as 2011. By 2015, it was to be in full production and employing some 25,000 people in the Magnolia state.

So what went wrong? According to the civil suit, the CEO and CFO of Hybrid Kinetic Automotive Corp., Charles Wang and Jack Deng respectively, attempted to wrangle the company away from the parent, Hybrid Kinetic Automotive Holdings Inc. The founder and chairman of the venture, Rong "Benjamin" Yeung, was the man behind Brilliance China Automotive and could be a little sensitive about these types of issues since, a few years back, any ownership of that company was stripped away from him by the Liaoning Provincial Government (PDF). The judge summed the current situation down nicely, saying that the partnership "has broken down in rather spectacular fashion." As for the car, no details have yet been released. Thanks to Mart for the tip!

[Source: commercialappeal.com]