As part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced a $15.5 billion package of funding and loans primarily focused on retooling existing factories for the transition to electric vehicles (EVs)-supporting good jobs and a just transition to EVs. This includes making available $2 billion in grants and up to $10 billion in loans to support automotive manufacturing conversion projects that retain high-quality jobs in communities that currently host these manufacturing facilities. In the Domestic Conversion Grant Program, higher scores will be given to projects that are likely to retain collective bargaining agreements and/or those that have an existing high-quality, high-wage hourly production workforce, such as applicants that currently pay top quartile wages in their industry. The Department also announced a Notice of Intent to make available $3.5 billion in funding to expand domestic manufacturing of batteries for electric vehicles and the nation’s grid, as well for battery materials and components currently imported from other countries. The Notice of Intent outlines how DOE will support growing domestic industry while also supporting manufacturing workers and promoting equity and environmental justice. Together, these federal investments underscore President Biden’s deep commitment to helping retain and expand high-paying manufacturing jobs while empowering workers to have a strong voice in and capture the economic benefits of the clean energy transition. The President’s Investing in America agenda is also enhancing our national security by building up the domestic supply chains necessary to reach the Administration’s ambitious climate goals.
“President Biden is investing in the workforce and factories that made our country a global manufacturing powerhouse,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “Today’s announcements show that President Biden understands that building the cars of the future also necessitates helping the communities challenged by the transition away from the internal combustion engine.”
Depending on their capital needs, manufacturers can apply to receive assistance via financial grants through DOE’s Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains (MESC) or preferable debt financing through DOE’s Loan Program Office.
Converting and Retrofitting America’s Manufacturing Plants
DOE today announced a new $2 billion funding opportunity to spur the conversion of long-standing facilities to manufacture electric vehicles and components. Supported by President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, the Domestic Manufacturing Conversion Grants for electrified vehicles program, will provide cost-shared grants for domestic production of efficient hybrid, plug-in electric hybrid, plug-in electric drive, and hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles. This program will expand manufacturing of light-, medium-, and heavy-duty electrified vehicles and components and support commercial facilities including those for vehicle assembly, component assembly, and related vehicle part manufacturing. The program aims to support a just transition for workers and communities in the transition to electrified transportation, with particular attention to communities supporting facilities with longer histories in automotive manufacturing. Preference will also be given to projects that commit to pay high wages for production workers and maintain collective bargaining agreements.
Projects selected for this funding must also contribute to the President’s Justice40 Initiative, which aims to advance diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in America’s workforce and ensure every community benefits from the transition to a clean energy future. This funding supports goals and targets detailed in the 100-day reviews under Executive Order 14017 “America’s Supply Chains and the Federal Consortium for Advanced Batteries’ National Blueprint for Lithium Batteries,” which provides a path to building a strong domestic battery supply chain and accelerating the development of a robust, secure, and equitable domestic industrial base by 2030.