Biden travels to Detroit Auto Show to detail billions in funding for EV charging stations

President Joe Biden was scheduled to travel to Michigan on Wednesday to visit the Detroit Auto Show and promote his administration’s efforts to promote electric vehicle manufacturing and reduce the need for fossil fuels.

The president was scheduled to leave Washington just after 9 a.m. EDT and arrive in Detroit at 10:30 a.m., according to the White House schedule.

Biden will speak at Detroit’s Huntington Place Convention Center at 1:45 p.m.

During his visit to the auto show, which is known formally as the North American International Auto Show, Biden will announce approval for about $900 million in federal funding to build the first EV chargers across 35 states. The money will come from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that was passed last year.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, in fact, will provide $7.5 billion to build a national network of 500,000 EV charging stations and another $17 billion for EV battery production and clean transit and school buses.

“The future of transportation is electric,” the White House said in a statement Wednesday. “The president’s economic plan has generated an American electric vehicle boom that is creating new economic opportunity and tens of thousands of good-paying and union jobs across the country.”

Companies including Toyota, Honda, Ford, General Motors and Panasonic have announced tens of billions of dollars in investments in electric vehicles — which is a three-fold increase in EV funding over 2020, the White House said.

Billions in investments recently announced by U.S. automakers to expand EV and battery manufacturing represents nearly a 30-fold increase compared to 2020.

New electric vehicle charging stations are seen in a parking garage at Union Station in Washington, D.C., on April 22, 2021. President Biden is earmarking billions from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to build more charging stations across 35 states. File Photo by Sarah Silbiger/UPI

Wednesday’s tour is part of Biden’s agenda to accelerate EV production and wean off fossil fuels, for the benefit of the environment and to become less reliant on oil imports.

The White House on Wednesday pointed to Biden’s successes with the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Inflation Reduction Act and CHIPS and Science Act as factors that “have positioned the United States to lead the electric vehicle future,” create more jobs and make more in America while fighting climate change.

The Inflation Reduction Act is considered by many to be one of the most significant actions to fight climate change in U.S. history. It allocates billions in funding for green energy development and aims to cut carbon emissions by 40% by the end of the 2020s.

Incidentally, the Detroit Auto Show will feature the rollout of the anticipated “farewell edition” of the Chrysler 300, a large-model sedan that runs on gasoline.

After his visit at the auto show, Biden will also meet with union workers, CEOs and local community leaders.
Copyright 2022 United Press International, Inc. (UPI). Any reproduction, republication, redistribution and/or modification of any UPI content is expressly prohibited without UPI’s prior written consent.

—-

This content is published through a licensing agreement with Acquire Media using its NewsEdge technology.