Norwegian carmaker Think is racing to secure a plant site in Indiana, Michigan or Oregon, get a U.S. grant, build a factory and put a two-seat electric car on American streets — all by next fall.

A site in Indiana has been identified, but the company has yet to disclose its location. Think spokesman Brendan Prebo in Dearborn, Mich., home of the company’s U.S. office, said all three states are being evaluated and that the plant site will be picked by year’s end.

On Wednesday, Reuters news service reported Indiana had won the plant, but Prebo told The Indianapolis Star that the report was premature.

Prebo said the general plan has been to look at former “brownfield” industrial sites where dislocated manufacturing workers could get new jobs.

Think intends to build the plant using a grant from a federal program for rebuilding industrial areas. Having the site identified would help Think secure the grant, Prebo said.

Indiana and Michigan are filled with old factory cities, while Oregon is close to what is expected to be a growing Western market for electric cars.

Think earlier said the plant would employ 300 and produce up to 16,000 of its two-seat City electric cars each year. The car is now in production in Finland for the European market.

Lithium-ion batteries for the U.S. vehicle would come from EnerDel in Indianapolis.

EnerDel is owned by New York-based Ener1, which owns 31 percent of Think and just invested $18 million in the Norwegian company to help it weather bankruptcy. A123 is building a $600 million battery plant near Detroit to supply Chrysler, Think and other carmakers.

Think City, a 123-inch-long car, is powered by batteries capable of moving the vehicle 112 miles before it has to stop and recharge at a regular power outlet. The car has no gas engine.

Think, run by former Ford engineer Richard Canny, later will select a city for a U.S. headquarters and technical office. Blair West, Indiana Economic Development Corp. spokeswoman, said she had no information about whether IEDC officials have talked to Think about putting those operations in the state.

Prebo, a former colleague of Canny’s when the latter worked in Ford’s alternative car programs, said initial plans call for marketing the City to fleet customers, such as power companies.

Think is on a tight deadline, trying to launch the new car in 2010’s third quarter, but executives are confident they can get the grant, set up and tune the factory in that time, Prebo said.

One time-consuming task — crash testing — has been completed. Ford designed Think and completed the crash safety tests required by the U.S. government before selling off the brand several years ago, Prebo said.

If it goes on sale next fall, it would be the first mass-market electric car produced in the U.S. since the 1910s.

“Frankly, I think this car is going to be a home run,” said Ken Baker, a director of both Ener1 and Think and the retired head of General Motors research and development. "I think it’s uniquely positioned to be a core product in the commuter car market.’’

Think director William James, managing director of Rockport Capital of Boston, said the Think has an advantage as the only American electric car certified to meet U.S. crash standards.

Rockport invested in Think two years ago as the company set out to clear up production problems, bringing in Canny to smooth out operations issues.

“It took good old-fashioned car guys who weren’t thinking 10 or 20 years down the road about the future of electric cars and were simply focused on ‘How do we get this car on the road now?’ " James said.