Don't count old-school GM out yet in the electric car race

Shares of General Motors jumped more than 4 percent Monday, as the U.S. auto giant laid out plans to introduce two more electric vehicles for the U.S. market.

The company will roll out two more electric vehicles in the U.S. over the next 18 months and 20 electric or fuel-cell powered vehicles globally within the next six years, according to the Associated Press.

The company declined to disclose the details of the coming U.S. vehicles. But it said that it has developed a new battery system that would allow for more variation on the size and shape of electric vehicles in the future, according to Dow Jones.

The company’s stock closed at $42.15, a new high in its most recent incarnation as a public company.

General Motors’ emergence as a leader in electric vehicle technology is a remarkable turnaround for a company that nearly collapsed during the Great Recession and had to be bailed out, along with several of its competitors, by the government in 2009. The company limped through a government assisted bankruptcy process and emerged to go public again in late 2010. All that seems like a distant memory now.

Some other key details:

• The Chevy bolt is considered one of the first truly affordable electric vehicles able to travel a decent range—about 240 miles.
• Elon Musk’s Tesla Model 3, which has a similar price point and range, will go head to head with the Bolt.
• But don’t forget that the affordability of these electric vehicles is largely dependent on a $7,500 Federal tax credit, which could come up for reconsideration by a Trump administration with many close ties to the oil and gas industry.