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On Tuesday, vehicle maker General Motors (GM) announced its plan to develop electric cars in China through a joint venture with China’s biggest auto company, the Shanghai Automotive Industry. (The New York Times). GM is currently China’s largest foreign maker of cars, with 2.2 million cars sold in 2010 (USA Today). However, part of this joint venture is the requirement to transfer GM’s technology on electric cars to the venture, thus giving Chinese automakers access to these technology (The New York Times).

In today’s world, sustainability is a key factor in any product. As sustainability is put on the spotlight, many manufactures attempt to produce “green” products: products that are environmentally friendly. According to U.S. Energy Information Administration, China tops the charts with 7.7 million tons of Carbon Dioxide emissions in 2009. As a result, China is trying to attract automobile makers to share their technology on electric cars in hopes of improving China’s pollution problems.

I believe GM’s decision is a wise one. Although GM is the largest foreign car manufacture at the moment, developing this joint venture will allow GM to collect even more market share and spend the increased revenue on further research for environmental-friendly technology.

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