GM CEO says 2010 Volt launch on schedule

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - General Motors Corp GM.N Chief Executive Rick Wagoner said on Thursday the No. 1 U.S. automaker had not hit any obstacles yet that would force it to delay the planned 2010 launch of its plug-in hybrid, the Chevrolet Volt.

"So far we're on schedule," said Wagoner, who was speaking to reporters after a speech to a San Francisco-based public affairs organization.

Wagoner, who had earlier suggested GM's target of launching the electric vehicle could slip, said key work on battery development for the new car was progressing well.

"Our optimism is building," he said.

In his speech to the Commonwealth Club, Wagoner said he did not expect oil prices to retreat to the low levels that spurred U.S. drivers to snap up sport-utility vehicles and large pickup trucks. "Consumers are acting pretty rationally," he said.

GM, Wagoner said, is responding with investments in technology to increase vehicle fuel efficiency, part of an effort that includes the Volt.

California, a market dominated by import brands like Toyota (7203.T) and Honda (7267.T), has been increasingly tough for GM in recent years and the company has also taken flak for killing an earlier experimental electric car program in the state.

Environmental advocates, particularly in California, have urged automakers to develop plug-in vehicles like the Volt, which GM sees as part of a bid to win back consumers who have abandoned the Detroit-based automaker because of concern about fuel economy and the environment.

Wagoner's speech was interrupted briefly by two protesters criticizing the company. They were quickly escorted away.

GM announced this week it would cut its annual truck production by about 138,000 vehicles this year by eliminating a production shift at four North American plants, a step expected to prompt layoffs for about 3,500 workers.

Earlier on Thursday, the automaker posted a 27 percent drop in light truck sales in a shift that hit other automakers as consumers move toward smaller and more fuel-efficient cars.

Overall GM sales were down 23 percent in April after adjusting for the number of sales days in the month.

A strike at GM supplier American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings (AXL.N), now in its ninth week, has cost the automaker about 230,000 units of lost production but allowed it to run inventories down sharply.

GM said earlier that its April inventory of 244,000 cars and 579,000 trucks in dealer stocks was the lowest since it had records on hand.

Wagoner told reporters he did not expect GM to make more production cuts, as its inventories had already shrunk.

"I don't see additional cutbacks," he said.

Wagoner added that GM had declined to participate in ongoing contract talks aimed at ending the strike at American Axle, but hoped for a quick resolution to the work stoppage.

American Axle shares shot higher on Thursday after a published report that the parts supplier and the United Auto Workers union had agreed on the framework for a contract deal.

(Editing by Braden Reddall)