WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is awarding nearly $2 billion in grants to help restart or expand electric vehicle manufacturing and assembly sites in eight states, including the presidential battlegrounds of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Georgia.
The Energy Department will issue grants totaling $1.7 billion to create or maintain thousands of union jobs and support auto-based communities that have long driven the U.S. economy, the White House said Thursday. In addition to the three swing states, grants will also go to electric vehicle installations in Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland and Virginia.
The donations cover a wide range of the automotive supply chain, including parts for electric motorcycles and school buses, hybrid engines, batteries for heavy commercial trucks and electric SUVs, the White House said.
“Building a clean energy economy can and should be a win-win for union workers and automakers,” President Joe Biden said in a statement. “This investment will create thousands of good-paying, unionized manufacturing jobs and retain even more – from Lansing, Michigan to Fort Valley, Georgia – by helping auto companies retool, restart and rehire in the same factories and communities.”
The grants, paid for by the landmark 2022 climate bill, will help fulfill its commitment to ensure the future of the auto industry is made in America by American union workers, Biden said.
“Workers who were left behind by my predecessor are now returning with the support of my policies, including the conversion subsidies my administration is announcing today,” said the Democratic president.
The concession announcement comes as Biden rejects calls to step aside after a disastrous debate performance last month. Biden, 81, acknowledged his poor performance but called it a “bad night,” although many Democrats in Congress, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, refused to give him a full vote of confidence. .
Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump maintained a tight grip on the Republican Party even after becoming the first former president to be convicted of a crime.
“There is nothing more difficult for an industrial community than losing jobs to foreign competition and a changing industry,” said Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, former governor of Michigan. Even as competitors like China invest heavily in electric vehicles, the grants announced Thursday will help “ensure our auto industry remains competitive – and does so in the communities and workforce that have supported the auto industry for generations.” ,” Granholm said.
The new grants complement $177 billion in private-sector investment in electric vehicle and battery manufacturing since Biden took office, Granholm and other officials said.
Awards are subject to negotiations to ensure commitments to workers and communities are met, officials said. The Department of Energy will also complete environmental reviews before the money is awarded later this year.
If the awards are completed as planned, the selected projects will create more than 2,900 jobs and help ensure that about 15,000 union workers are retained across all 11 facilities, the White House said. The donations come on the heels of successful union organizing efforts from Chattanooga, Tennessee, to Fort Valley, Georgia, the White House said.
“The president will not take his foot off the gas when it comes to supporting the U.S. auto industry,” said White House national economic adviser Lael Brainard.
Transportation is responsible for the largest source of greenhouse gas pollution in the US and Biden has made electric vehicles a key part of his climate agenda.
“Not only are we providing new sources of clean transit – that iconic yellow school bus that goes green – but we are also delivering the American people options to save…thousands of dollars in fuel and maintenance costs over the life of a bus. vehicle. ”going electric,” said White House climate adviser Ali Zaidi.
Companies slated to receive awards include Blue Bird Body Co., which will receive nearly $80 million to convert a Georgia site previously used to manufacture diesel-powered motorhomes to produce electric school buses. Fiat Chrysler will receive nearly $335 million to convert a decommissioned assembly plant in Illinois to assemble electric vehicles, and $250 million in a separate grant to convert a transmission plant in Indiana to make electric drive modules for EVs.
General Motors, in turn, will receive $500 million to convert an assembly plant in Lansing, Michigan, to produce electric vehicles. GM’s production lines will further support and benefit from continued investments in the U.S. battery supply chain, accelerating the commercialization of advanced, affordable electric vehicles, the White House said.
Harley-Davidson will receive $89 million to expand a facility in York, Pennsylvania, to manufacture electric motorcycles, and the Volvo Group will receive $208 million to upgrade three manufacturing facilities that supply and build Mack and heavy-duty trucks. Volvo. Manufacturing facilities are located in Macungie, Pennsylvania; Dublin, Virginia; and Hagerstown, Maryland.
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
