REPORT: Zenn cancels plans for high-speed EV, will focus on supplying ZENNergy Drive components

According to reports from Reuters and GM-Volt.com, Zenn Motors has canceled plans to launch its cityZENN high-speed electric car and will slow down work on its low-speed EVs. According to Zenn Chief Executive Ian Clifford, the company will focus its efforts on becoming a supplier of ZENNergy Drive electric vehicle drivetrain components, which we assume will center around the EEStor energy storage system. Why the change in plans?

Our decisions regarding cityZENN continue to evolve in response to advancements in electric vehicle deployment across the industry since we announced cityZENN a couple of years ago... Integration of ZENNergy Drive in Tier 1 and OEM product has always been our long term objective. The cityZENN program was always designed as a proof of concept for ZENNergy Drive.

According to Clifford, EEStor still plans to perform component testing in September (which at this point is nearly over), though it (surprise!) won't necessarily publish the results of its findings. The next step would be to "deliver functional technology" to Zenn by the end of 2009. We're waiting... still.

[Source: GM-Volt.com, Reuters]