US auto maker General Motors announced Thursday it would come up with a 200-mile-range (322-km-range) electric car, which would have a price tag of $37,500 (33,000 euros).

The company added the vehicle would be built at a factory in Orion Township, Michigan, as of 2017, with the price not including a $7,500 federal tax credit.

GM said the e-car had not officially been named, noting only it would be based on the Chevrolet Bolt concept car shown at the Detroit auto show last month.

Huge potential

The Bolt looks like a cross between a VW Golf and BMW's electric i3. Designers said GM's hatchback would have SUV-like cargo room and a high seating position - two attributes that have made such cars popular across the US.

Watch video 01:48 Share Going Electric - Fated to Fail? Send Facebook google+ Whatsapp Tumblr linkedin stumble Digg reddit Newsvine Permalink https://p.dw.com/p/1DyQp Going electric in Germany

"We are moving quickly because of its potential to completely shake up the status quo for electric vehicles," GM North America President Alan Batey said in a statement.

The car is meant to compete with Silicon Valley auto maker Tesla Motors, which plans to start selling its own 200-mile-range e-car about the same time.

hg/sri (Reuters, dpa)