As part of its restructuring that will close four North American plants producing SUVs and trucks and increase production of smaller vehicles, General Motors has announced that its board has approved production funding for the Chevy Volt electric plug-in hybrid. It is expected to be ready by the end of 2010 if its lithium ion battery packs meet requirements. Production is planned for the Detroit/Hamtramck Assembly Center provided GM gets certain tax breaks with Edmunds.com claiming that an annual production volume of 100,000 units a year after 2010 is planned. (via GM-Volt.com)