Auto brand Detroit Electric Holdings Ltd will partner with the Malaysian auto manufacturer Proton Holdings Berhad to produce pure electric sedan vehicles for the U.S., U.K. Europe and China markets due in 2010, the companies said Monday.

In the deal, Detroit Electric will license two Proton vehicle platforms and will market the vehicles under its brand. Proton will assemble the cars. The vehicles will be priced between $23,000 and $26,000 for the city range model, and range from $28,000 to $33,000 for the extended range model, the companies announced in a statement.

Our contract manufacturing business model will breathe new life into current manufacturers, leveraging existing unutilized global resources and accelerating the technological advancement of pure electric vehicles, said Albert Lam, Detroit Electric's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer in the statement while expressing confidence that Pure Electric Vehicles will attract a diverse base of consumers despite the tightening credit market.

Some of the features of the vehicles include, the Magnetic Flux Motor Technology and Lithium Polymer Battery Technology with a potential to run 111 miles with a single-charge for the city range model and 200 miles for the extended range model.

The companies aim to target an audience ranging from professionals and executives, to mothers, students and small business owners.

Detroit Electric was one of several manufacturers of electric cars at the beginning of the 20th Century. However in the 1930's the original Detroit Electric went out of business.

China Electric cars