EV industry praises federal investments in Michigan

Michigan’s electric vehicle industry is praising the Biden administration for its latest investments in EV manufacturing and innovation.

About $650 million will go toward retooling auto plants in Lansing and Marysville to produce newer EV models. The funding is part of the Inflation Reduction Act, going to Michigan and seven other states to make more EVs.

Sophia Schuster, policy principal for the Michigan Energy Innovation Business Council, said the money should help the state fight “brain drain.” She noted Michigan is 49th in the U.S. in population growth since 1990.

“I think it’s exciting to show that investments like these not only encourage people to stay and come in (to) Michigan but that there is a lot of potential for the clean energy workforce,” Schuster explained. “Particularly in the auto manufacturing space.”

In Michigan, the plans are expected to retain more than 1,000 jobs and create a few dozen new ones. Billions of dollars have already been spent during the Biden administration to reduce vehicle emissions and combat climate change. Transportation is the top source of emissions in the U.S.

Jane McCurry, executive director of the trade group Clean Fuels Michigan, said it is an exciting time to be in the renewable energy industry. Public and private dollars are also pouring into EV chargers, zero-emission school buses, and other alternative mobility sources. She argued it will ultimately give consumers more choices.

“No matter what your choice is, you know that you can fuel it in your community, on your commute, on your way up north for vacation,” McCurry emphasized. “That is where public dollars come in, is making sure that people can get everywhere they need and want to go within Michigan in a safe, efficient, effective, enjoyable way.”

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has set a statewide goal of building 100,000 EV chargers in the state by 2030, enough to support 2 million vehicles.