Detroit Evening Report: Michigan EV industry responds to Trump policy changes
Listen to the latest episode of the “Detroit Evening Report” podcast.
An electric vehicle charging.
While President Donald Trump took aim at the electric vehicle industry this week, there is still optimism about the industry’s future in Michigan.
Subscribe to the Detroit Evening Report on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.
More than $27 billion is being poured into some 60 EV manufacturing and battery projects in the state, edging out even Georgia, with $26.6 billion, according to Atlas Public Policy, indicating that the birthplace of the modern auto industry continues to be central to its present and future.
Michigan is home to hundreds of supply companies in addition to the Big Three automakers, including Factory ZERO, GM’s remade assembly plant for electric Hummers and Silverados; the $1.6 billion battery manufacturing campus in Van Buren Township that’s expected to create more than 2,100 jobs and the equivalent of 200,000 EV battery packs each year once fully running; and many more.
The president signed an executive order on Monday promising to eliminate an EV “mandate,” referring to President Joe Biden’s target for 50% of new vehicles sold in the U.S. by 2030 to be electric and Environmental Protection Agency action to slash greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles over the coming years. The policies never required automakers to sell electric vehicles or consumers to buy them.
President Trump’s order indicates he will roll back those pollution rules, and he already paused billions of dollars in funding allocated for EV charging stations.
Stellantis, the manufacturer of Jeep and Ram, said in a statement it is “well positioned to adapt to the policy changes enacted by the new Administration” and that it looks forward to working with the president. Ford had no comment on the changes, and a GM spokesperson did not comment.
-Reporting by Alexa St. John, Associated Press.
Other headlines for Friday, Jan. 24, 2025:
- If you are looking for an elegant afternoon of tea and song featuring a buffet of sweet and savory selections, look no further than Detroit Opera’s “Tea and Treasures: Arias over Afternoon Tea,” taking place at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 26. Performances will include works from Mozart, Puccini and more.
- And there are many events celebrating the Lunar New Year across metro Detroit this weekend.
Do you have a community story we should tell? Let us know in an email at detroiteveningreport@wdet.org.
Trusted, accurate, up-to-date.
WDET strives to make our journalism accessible to everyone. As a public media institution, we maintain our journalistic integrity through independent support from readers like you. If you value WDET as your source of news, music and conversation, please make a gift today.
