Michigan doubled its EV numbers in one year

The number of electric vehicles registered in Michigan doubled between 2021 and 2022, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.

In 2021, about 17,500 electric vehicles were registered in Michigan.In 2022 that number jumped to 36,900, the Energy Department said. The 2022 stats were revealed for the first time after former Michigan governor and current U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm visited Detroit this week.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer believes Michigan should build the infrastructure for two million EVs by 2030. The federal government has given Michigan $110 million to build EV charging resources — 127 chargers, at a cost of $866,000 per — while Whitmer seeks $113 million for EV support in her 2024 proposed budget. Whitmer seeks $65 milllion for EV chargers and a $48 million two-year break on tax and fee break for EV buyers.

The Michigan Public Service Commission, the state’s energy regulator, was enlisted in the EV mission as well. The commission directed DTE Energy to make peak-hour pricing mandatory starting in March, running from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, but its order exempted electric vehicle chargers.

On Thursday, the Granholm-led Energy Department announced $9.2 billion in loans for Ford and South Korean battery maker SK ON to build EV batteries at two facilities in Kentucky and one in Tennessee.

Federal regulators have expressed an intention to stop the sale of new gas vehicles in America as soon as 2035.