The flowers are blooming and electric vehicle manufacturing and the electric transportation job market in the Southeast is booming. In partnership with Atlas Public Policy, we're excited to share updated year-end electric vehicle market data for the region and state-by-state.
2022 saw massive growth in EV jobs and investments – the Southeast has captured over 40% of the nation's EV and battery manufacturing and supply chain investments to date. The region has captured nearly $54.6 billion in announced investment and expects more than 40,000 anticipated jobs. Additionally, regional light-duty EV sales crossed the 5% market share threshold, with Florida, Georgia, and North Carolina topping 6% in Q4.
Take a look at six major indicators from the Southeast below and explore the regional and state-specific pages.
All measures include medium- and heavy-duty EVs, except for sales, which refer exclusively to passenger EVs. EV includes both battery EVs (BEV) and Plug-in Hybrid EVs (PHEV). Employment and Investment refer to announced EV manufacturing facilities including EV charging, EV assembly, battery manufacturing, and battery recycling facilities. Utility refers to investor-owned utilities only. Total is cumulative unless stated. Data is through December 2022 and growth is taken from January 1 to December 31, 2022. To understand EV Sales and charging deployment in a national context, please read our report. Source: “Transportation Electrification in the Southeast” report 2022 year-end updates; Atlas EV Hub + Southern Alliance for Clean Energy.
Last but certainly not least, it's Women's History Month! I'm thankful everyday for the opportunity to work alongside the amazing women in the clean energy and clean transportation industry. These dedicated women are advancing technologies and policies that will pave the way for a more sustainable future. Join me in celebrating and giving thanks to the women EV drivers, workers, innovators, supporters, and more for all that they do!
As we continue to track the progress of electric transportation growth in the Southeast and beyond, we remain grateful for our readers who stay connected to us and others on Facebook and Twitter. To receive these newsletters in your inbox, click here to sign up!
Charging Forward,
Dory Larsen
Powering the EV Movement
Electric Vehicles are Gaining Ground in the Southeast as Billions of Investment Dollars Flow
SACE and our partner, Atlas Public Policy, recently published a year-end data update as a supplement to our annual “Transportation Electrification in the Southeast” report that dives deep into the substantial momentum in the Southeast across electric vehicle market indicators, including economic and workforce development, EV sales and charging infrastructure deployment, and government and electric utility funding. These updated regional and state pages track progress on transportation electrification in six states in the Southeast: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. The data presented on these pages reflects activity from January through December 2022. Read more.
Get Plugged-In
Charging and Fueling Infrastructure Discretionary Grant Program
Grant
The Charging and Fueling Infrastructure Discretionary Grant Program (CFI Program) is a new competitive grant program that compliments the NEVI formula funding. It was created by President Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to strategically deploy publicly accessible electric vehicle charging and alternative fueling infrastructure projects in urban and rural communities in publicly accessible locations, including downtown areas and local neighborhoods, particularly in underserved and disadvantaged communities.
The $700 million released in this Notice of Funding Opportunity is the first tranche of the $2.25 billion split between two funding categories. The Corridor Program applies to municipalities along the Alternative Fuels Corridor and the Community Program is open to all municipalities.
For more information, the Department of Transportation held a webinar detailing the program (password: i#l2b6UV). The application deadline is May 30, but if you miss this round of funding there will be three more years of opportunity. Please reach out if you'd like to brainstorm a project for your community: electrifythesouth.org/contact.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provides $2.5 billion over five years for this program with up to $700 million from Fiscal Years 2022 and 2023. Applicants include:
States or political subdivision of States
Metropolitan planning organizations
Unit of local governments
Indian tribes
More
Charging and Fueling Infrastructure Discretionary Grant Program Applications due May 30, 2023 Learn More + Apply
Drive Electric Earth Day
In-person events
Drive Electric Earth Day is a national campaign to share information about electric vehicles throughout the month of April. In addition to being better for the environment, electric vehicles are more fun to drive, more convenient to fuel and less expensive to operate than gasoline vehicles. RSVP for an in-person or online event to experience driving electric!
Drive Electric Earth Day April Find an Event
Everyday Climate Solutions: Tools to Help You Take Action at Home
Webinar
Earth Day is just around the corner. Are you feeling inspired to take action and reduce your carbon footprint? Then you won’t want to miss a free webinar from Drawdown Georgia that will identify some of the most impactful ways you can help grow climate solutions in the Peach state. From starting a compost system in your yard to eating less meat to upgrading to an electric car or truck, there are so many ways that each of us can make a difference.
Moderated by Blair Beasley, Director of Climate Strategies at the Ray C. Anderson Foundation, the panel for this event will include:
Dr. Keisha Callins, obstetrician/gynecologist, Community Health Care Systems
Khari Diop, community compost lab manager for Truly Living Well Center for Natural Urban Agriculture
Dory Larsen, Electric Transportation Program Manager at the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy
Everyday Climate Solutions: Tools to Help You Take Action at Home April 17 | 11 AM ET RSVP
Paving the Way
Legislators test drive electric vehicles at State House
At our recent electric vehicle ride and drive at the South Carolina legislature, we spoke about and demonstrated the environmental and economic benefits of electric vehicles. Dory Larsen, SACE's Electric Transportation Program Manager, spoke with the local ABC news station and said, “South Carolina has tremendous opportunity with economic development with electric transportation. There’s a number of manufacturers that are already producing electric cars, buses, and trucks across the state. People don’t recognize that the Southeast is a huge boom for manufacturing — and that means lots of local jobs."
One of the event co-hosts, Representative Deon Tedder, also spoke with the local ABC news station about the uniqueness of EVs, emphasizing it's not every day that a lawmaker gets to test a product or idea they might one day vote on, stating, “And that’s important because that is a big industry, up and coming now. Lots of money being invested in South Carolina. Lots of jobs. And so what we want to do today is have legislators experience how the technology works.” Read more and watch the video.
Vehicle-to-grid charging is coming fast — here’s how regulators and utilities can prepare now
Implemented correctly, EVs could be a lifeline for the grid. Unfortunately, many parts of the country have significant work to do to realize the full potential of EVs. There are currently few, if any, examples of states that have adopted regulations that require power utilities to consider EVs as a distributed energy resource, according to research by the Michigan Energy Innovation Business Council. Efforts to explore the opportunities and grid value of vehicle-to-grid, or V2G, charging, where the EV battery is a storage resource that can be tapped to shore up the grid, need to be expanded and sped up to make the transition to EVs go much smoother for the grid and consumers alike. Read more.
North Carolina Clean Trucks Website
SACE and our fellow electric transportation and climate allies are leading a campaign to get Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) rulemaking over the finish line that Governor Cooper initiated with Executive Order 271. ACT will accelerate the transition of medium and heavy-duty trucks and buses from dirty diesel to zero-tailpipe emissions – cleaning the air, spurring investment, and creating jobs. To support the campaign, advocates launched a new website highlighting ACT's benefits and the need to center environmental justice communities overburdened by and suffering from the health consequences of transportation pollution exposure. Visit the website.
Fact of the Week: Department of Energy The number of light-duty all-electric vehicles available to consumers has increased since the introduction of the first mass market EVs over a decade ago. The number of models nearly doubled from model year 2021 to 2022, going from 20 to 38. The number of EV models in 2022 also surpassed the number of plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) models for the first time since 2014. Read more.
Postal Service buys 9,250 electric vans, 14,000 charge stations It's happening! We can't wait to see electric Ford Transit vans delivering mail with zero tailpipe pollution, improving air quality, addressing climate change, and saving taxpayers money –USPS analysis concluded that because EVs cut government spending on gasoline, electric postal trucks are 11% less costly than conventional trucks. This would not have happened without a large advocacy effort and is a reminder persistence pays off! Read more.
Lead the Charge
Lead the Charge is a newly announced diverse network of local, national, and global advocacy partners working for an equitable, sustainable, and fossil-free auto supply chain. Members of the Lead the Charge network work across multiple geographies and issues, with expertise in the areas of climate, environmental justice, human rights, Indigenous rights, heavy industry, ESG and more. The network has launched a website outlining problems in the current auto-manufacturing supply chain and solutions. They also put together a score card that measures key environmental and human-rights factors from major players in the auto industry. Take a look.
Kicking Gas
Every month we'll spotlight stories and photos from YOU, our readers, about how EVs play a role in your world. To be featured in an upcoming ETS newsletter, send us an email here! We'll also highlight our partners and allies from our testimonials page and feature photos from events SACE has participated in across the region.
Attendees from the North Florida VegFest!
We had so much fun at the North Florida VegFest on March 4! The event featured nationally recognized speakers and authors, vegan cooking demonstrations, eco-and animal- friendly vendors, eco-friendly kids activities, live music performances, healthy sustainable foods, and an all-around great time! We at SACE were there taking attendees on test drives in an electric vehicle! Many were excited about the cool features, savings possibilities, and environmental benefits of driving electric! We're excited to see some of these smiling faces behind the wheel of their own EV someday.
Interested in more content from the event? SACE and others spoke with Domenick Yoney of InsideEVs about electric vehicles. Check out our interview at the 29 minute mark!