An official of the US congress says the Energy Department is lending US$5.9 billion to Ford Motor Co. and providing about US$2.1 billion in loans to Nissan Motor Co. and Tesla Motors Inc. from a US$25 billion fund to develop fuel-efficient vehicles.

Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced the first loan recipients at Ford's Research and Innovation Centre in Dearborn, Mich. The loans to Ford will help the company upgrade factories to produce 13 fuel-efficient vehicles, the congressional official said. The person requested anonymity because an official announcement was pending.

Nissan was receiving US$1.6 billion to retool their plant in Smyrna, Tenn., to build advanced vehicles and build a battery manufacturing facility. Tesla was receiving uS$465 million in loans to build electric vehicles and electric drive powertrains in California.