Neighborhood electric vehicle manufacturer ZAP reported that its third quarter, which ended September 30, was its best ever, or at least since it launched the Xebra model in 2006. In fact, it shipped 200% more vehicles in the third quarter of 2008 than it did in the same quarter last year.

While this is absolutely good news — the company has even upped its workforce by 30%, something the Big Three couldn’t do this summer — it has to be put in perspective. ZAP is a small company, so a 200% increase in units shipped means 240 went out the door this summer, as opposed to 80 in 2007.

In comparison, the rest of the industry slumped hard in August. Sales were down 15.5% over last year, making it the worst August the auto industry has seen in a decade. GM’s sales were down 20%, Ford was down 27%, Toyota dropped 9% despite the popular Prius, and even steady Honda dropped 7%. But Chrysler had it the worst in August, with a 34% drop in sales.

Franklin, Kentucky, will be the home of new venture Integrity Automotive, which will build the Zap Alias, among other vehicles. The first shovelfuls of dirt were lifted last Friday, and the first cars are expected to roll off the assembly line in a year. Zap brought a protype of the space-age-looking Alias to the groundbreaking.

The 200-acre site is being prepped for a 1-million-square-foot manufacturing facility that will employ 1000 people and produce electric vehicles for Zap’s global distribution. Currently, most of Zap’s electric vehicles, including the popular little Xebra neighborhood electric vehicle, are built in China. Kentucky put together $48 million in incentives to lure Zap to bring jobs to their state instead of farming them out to Asia, and the city of Franklin has pledged $76 million in industrial revenue bonds. Kentucky’s governor, Steve Beshear, also signed an executive order to expand the use of EVs in the state.

The plant is a joint venture between Integrity Manufacturing, one of Kentucky’s fastest-growing businesses, and Zap. The EV builder has had a shaky reputation in the past for following through on its promises, so let’s hope they see this one all the way through.