Vehicles produced in Mexico also serve customers in the US, Canada, China, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and South Korea. Ford is investing US$1.6 billion in a new small car plant in Mexico, building a new manufacturing site in San Luis Potosi State. Construction begins this summer. Specific vehicles being produced at the new facility will be announced later. MORE

Uruguay. sales of hybrid SUVs and other fuel efficient vehicles will prove interesting to watch this year, especially if fuel prices remain relatively low. Expert predictions about where oil and gas prices are headed vary widely. MORE

GM South America includes GM’s existing sales and manufacturing operations in Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela as well as sales activities in those countries and Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay. General Motors is creating a new regional organization to meet rising customer demand in South America. GM South America will be headquartered in Sao Paulo, Brazil and will be led by Jaime Ardila, currently president and general manager GM Mercosur. MORE

Uruguay’s government-owned sole energy supplier, UTE, has become the latest company to convert to electric-powered transport, taking delivery of no less than 30 Renault Kangoo ZE. MORE

UTE, which generates, transmits and distributes electricity in Uruguay, took delivery of its new fleet of 30 Kangoo Z.E.s In 2008, Uruguay committed to diversifying its sources of electricity. Today, 84% of the country’s electricity comes from renewable sources and the government’s target is to extend this figure to 90% due, in part, to the development of wind farms which stand to produce one-third of Uruguay’s electricity by 2016. MORE

The batteries are currently powering the cars in the second season of the Championship, with the next round taking place in Uruguay on 19 December. MORE

It will transport both passengers and cars between Uruguay and Argentina. The ferry will have an operating speed of 50 knots, and in crossing the River Plate (Rio de la Plata) at high speed, the ferry will be able to viably compete with air traffic between Uruguay and Argentina. MORE

The Latin American market will be driven largely by uptake in Brazil, but other countries will also spur adoption, notably Uruguay which recently indicated it. Pike Research forecasts that the global market for all electric-drive buses—including hybrid, battery electric, and fuel cell buses—grow steadily over the next. 6 years, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 26.4% from 2012 to 2018. MORE

José Mujica, President of Uruguay, China-based BYD, CTS and Buquebus officials signed a contract to begin bringing electric buses into Uruguay. The first BYD electric buses will arrive in Uruguay before end of 2012 with targets to have over 500 buses running on roads by 2015. —Juan Carlos Lopez Mena, President of Buquebus, Uruguay’s largest tourism company. MORE

in partnership with Chinese automaker BYD Ltd, introduced the first battery-electric 12-meter rapid transit bus in Uruguay and the region. By 2015 it is expected that more than 500 BYD electric buses will be running on the streets and roads of Uruguay. Buquebus is the largest tourism transportation company in Uruguay, connecting more than 2 million passengers in Argentina and Uruguay per year by boat and by bus. Buquebus and CTS Auto S.A., MORE

Waze is rolling out the new feature first in Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Colombia, Czech Republic, El Salvador, France, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, Switzerland, Trinidad, Tobago and Uruguay. Waze, the popular “connected driver” app that combines navigation with driver contributions on traffic, accidents and other road data, is adding a speed limit feature that will automatically notify drivers when they are exceeding the speed limit. MORE

The Agile is targeted for emerging markets such as Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay (Mercosur). General Motors provided an image of the new Chevrolet Agile, a small car designed in Brazil and due to launch in that market in October. The 2010 Agile. Click to enlarge. MORE

Orders have been awarded in China, the Netherlands, Finland, Denmark, Uruguay, North and South America. BYD Company, Ltd. has been selected to supply 35 all-electric buses to be used to transfer passengers between airport terminals and aircraft at the Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. These 35 BYD buses will enter service in July of 2014 and will replace an aging fleet of conventionally powered buses. The open-public tender was sought by four other established suppliers. MORE

The Committee, chaired by Fernando Lugris of Uruguay, will present the Convention text to the UNEP Governing Council for adoption next month. At the conclusion of the International Negotiating Committee on Mercury ( INC5 ) meeting in Geneva ( earlier post ), nations agreed on a global, legally-binding treaty to prevent mercury emissions and releases. MORE

Since 2005, the company has been building commercial vehicles at a plant in San Martin, Buenos Aires, and this year will start production in a new plant located in Maldonado, Uruguay. Eaton Corporation has signed a long-term agreement to design and supply Argentine bus manufacturer Tecnología Avanzada en Transporte S. TATSA), a company wholly owned by Consorcio Metropolitano de Transporte S.A., with a hybrid electric power system for use in buses in Argentina and throughout South America. MORE