The U.S. DOE announced that it has conditionally offered a loan of up to $9.2 billion to support the construction of Ford Motor Company’s BlueOval SK manufacturing plants in Tennessee and Kentucky. Together, the plants, one located in Stanton, Tennessee, and two in Kentucky, will enable more than 120-gigawatt hours of U.S. battery production annually and displace more than 455 million gallons of gasoline per year for the lifetime of the vehicles powered by these batteries.

The conditional commitment demonstrates U.S. DOE’s intent to finance the project; however, several steps remain for the project to reach critical milestones, and certain conditions must be satisfied before a final loan is issued.

TDEC will provide matching funds to eligible Tennessee entities applying for federal funding under U.S. EPA's 2023 Clean School Bus Grants (CSB) Program to replace older diesel school buses with new all-electric school buses.

Though the CSB Program does not require grantee match or cost share, EPA has indicated that applicants demonstrating the commitment of other funding sources to reduce the federal cost for projects to below 100% will have their proposals more favorably evaluated. TDEC is committing a portion of the State’s Volkswagen Settlement Environmental Mitigation Trust (EMT) allocation to support Tennessee school districts and other eligible entities improve the competitiveness of their applications and maximize the amount of federal funds that may be granted to Tennessee entities under the CSB Program.

TDEC, through its Office of Energy Programs (OEP), will commit the following funding amounts as “non-federal share” to projects in the following manner:

Prospective applicants to the CSB Program that wish to leverage these non-federal funds are asked to submit information, noted in the email from TDEC OEP here, to TDEC.OEP@tn.gov with the subject "EPA Clean School Bus Grants Program Cost Share Interest" by COB on July 21.

Applicants approved to receive these non-federal matching funds will be notified and provided with a signed letter of commitment no later than August 4, such that applicants can include documentation of this financial commitment in CSB Program proposals due to EPA by August 22.

Please contact TDEC.OEP@tn.gov for any questions about this initiative.

Leoma
Lawrenceburg Utility Systems (LUS), TVA, Seven States Power Corporation, Edward’s Oil, and the Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce recently held a ribbon-cutting for new electric vehicle (EV) fast charging stations located at 2347 Hwy 43 S, Leoma, TN 38468. This project was completed as part of the Fast Charge Network program under which LUS is the fourth local power company in Tennessee to commission a site. These stations are available 24/7 for public use and are the first fast chargers located along either Hwy 64 or Hwy 43 in Tennessee.

Bristol
Bristol Tennessee Essential Services (BTES), TVA, TDEC, and Seven States Power Corporation also recently cut the ribbon on four new fast chargers for EVs at The Pinnacle shopping center, 416 Pinnacle Parkway, Bristol, TN 37620, as part of the Fast Charge TN Network.

The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) and Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) have released a partnering form for entities and individuals interested in partnering and participating in the build-out of electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure along Tennessee's designated Alternative Fuel Corridors (AFCs) as a part of the Tennessee Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (TEVI) Program, funded under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

By filling out the partnering form, you are allowing TDOT to share your contact information with the general public, and you understand that interested parties may contact you regarding the implementation of EV charging deployment in Tennessee. Information gathered in this form will be used to populate a directory of TEVI partnering contacts that will be available on the TEVI website.

TDOT will release a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) in the summer of 2023 for the TEVI Program. For Program information, please see the Notice of Intent (NOI), and for more information on eligible interstate exits, please visit TDOT's TEVI Map. Completing this form in no way obligates TDOT to fund electric vehicle supply equipment, nor does it guarantee a partnership under the TEVI program.

The resulting partnership list shall not be considered a TDOT or TDEC approved vendor or site host list, as those submitting information are not engaging in an official procurement or vetting process. This form is intended to provide interested parties with a means of identifying themselves or their entity as a potential project partner.

Dongwha Electrolyte broke ground on the company's first U.S. manufacturing operations in Clarksville earlier this month. The $70 million facility will serve EV lithium battery producers across the Southeast by producing electrolyte, a chemical that allows an electrical charge to pass between two terminals inside batteries.

U.S. DOE announced more than $192 million in funding to recycle batteries from consumer products, the launch of an advanced battery recycling research and development consortium, and the continuation of the Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Prize. These investments in consumer battery recycling will support a circular domestic supply chain for critical materials, aligned with a projected ten times increase in demand for EV batteries by 2030.

This follows an earlier announcement by the U.S. DOE of $2 million invested in advancing lithium-ion battery recycling and remanufacturing programs administrated by the ReCell Center, a collaboration of industry, academia, and national laboratories working together to advance recycling technologies along the entire battery life cycle.

Tennessee Tech University (TTU), Tennessee Clean Fuels, and other project partners will host a webinar on June 30 at 12:00 PM Central to provide information to interested organizations and fleets about the new U.S. DOE-funded Medium Duty eTruck Pilot Project. 

This testbed project will offer the opportunity for fleets to test an all-electric step van to evaluate how it performs in their operations and will invite fleets to trial the Xos FXSV01 at little to no cost and with charging infrastructure provided, with trials lasting anywhere from two weeks to one month, depending on availability.

This webinar will cover a number of topics including:

Register for the event here. To contact the project team, reach out to info@mdetruck.com or call 865-974-3834.

U.S. DOE’s Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO) has announced a funding opportunity for fiscal year 2023. Funding will support projects, completed in coordination with a Clean Cities coalition, to reduce costs to improve electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure, provide consumer education on EVs and EV charging, and develop batteries that use low-cost, abundant materials.

VTO has released two information session videos explaining the funding opportunity process and application components:

Session 1 provides an overview of the application process and notes key content for the application and its required components. Session 2 describes key information for the application components that correspond to a project budget.

View the Funding Opportunity Announcement for additional information. Concept papers are due June 26, and full applications are due August 11.

For questions on coordinating or partnering with a Clean Cities coalition in Tennessee, please email alexa.voytek@tn.gov to contact the Middle-West TN Clean Fuels Coalition and jgoverly@utk.edu to contact the East TN Clean Fuels Coalition.

Applications are due June 30. Additional information is available on the Sustainable Mobility Accelerator’s gener8tor page.  

The U.S. DOT’s Safe Streets and Roads for All Grant Program supports the development of a comprehensive safety action plan that identifies the most significant roadway safety concerns in a community and the implementation of projects and strategies to address roadway safety issues.

Eligible entities can apply for Planning and Demonstration Grants to develop, complete, or supplement a comprehensive safety action plan. A safety action plan aims to develop a holistic, well-defined strategy to prevent roadway fatalities and serious injuries in a locality, Tribe, or region. Funding is also available for Implementation Grants to implement projects and strategies identified in a safety action plan to address a roadway safety problem. Eligible applicants include a metropolitan planning organization, a political subdivision of a State or territory, a federally recognized Tribal government, and a multijurisdictional group of entities described in any of the previously mentioned entities.

The U.S. DOT is hosting multiple informational webinars for the program, which will also be recorded and available as resources for applicants. Review the Notice of Funding Opportunity here. Applications are due July 10.

The Federal Highway Administration’s Promoting Resilient Operations for Transformative, Efficient, and Cost-Saving Transportation or PROTECT Discretionary Grant Program funds projects that can improve the resilience of the surface transportation system by reducing flood risks, erosion, wave damage, and heat impacts. The program aims to minimize damage and disruption to the transportation system, improve traveling public safety, and improve equity.

Additional information is available on the Notice of Funding Opportunity and the PROTECT Discretionary Grant Program Fact Sheet. Eligible entities include all levels of government. Applications are due August 18.

EPA’s 2023 Clean School Bus Grant Program will award approximately $400 million in competitive grant funding to eligible applicants for the purchase of zero-emission school buses, clean school buses, and zero-emission charging infrastructure. Funding is available for two sub-programs, the School District Sub-program for school districts and Tribal applicants and the Third-Party Sub-program for third-party applicants.

EPA is prioritizing applications that will replace buses serving high-need local education agencies, rural areas, Tribal school districts funded by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and public school districts receiving basic support payments for students living on Tribal land and rural areas.

Though the CSB Program does not require grantee match or cost share, EPA has indicated that applicants demonstrating the commitment of other funding sources to reduce the federal cost for projects to below 100% will have their proposals more favorably evaluated. TDEC is committing a portion of the State’s Volkswagen Settlement Environmental Mitigation Trust (EMT) allocation to support Tennessee school districts and other eligible entities improve the competitiveness of their applications and maximize the amount of federal funds that may be granted to Tennessee entities under the CSB Program. Prospective applicants to the CSB Program that wish to leverage these non-federal funds are asked to submit information, noted in the email from TDEC OEP here, to TDEC.OEP@tn.gov with the subject "EPA Clean School Bus Grants Program Cost Share Interest" by COB on July 21.

Applications close on August 22 and must be submitted through Grants.gov. Multiple informational webinars are available, including upcoming webinars from the U.S. EPA and recorded video modules from the Clean Cities Coalition.  

To request no-cost technical assistance or support in completing an application, contact the TN BEEP (Bus Electrification, Education, and Planning) Partnership here: https://www.driveelectrictn.org/beep/. Additional resources are available on the Clean School Bus Grant Program website. For more information about the program, sign up for Clean School Bus Program news or contact cleanschoolbus@epa.gov.

This summer, TennSMART will launch the Open Innovation Challenge program to support the growth and development of the smart mobility industry in Tennessee. The program will catalyze innovation by coupling established businesses with founders to create solutions for technology and operational gaps, as many large, established businesses lack the operational capacity and personnel to keep up with innovation demands.

The program starts with a company acknowledging a technology gap in its operational capacity or product offering. That gap is then presented to an engaged team of entrepreneurs. Over the course of four weeks, the founder “think tank” will work to create a viable and marketable technology solution to respond to the innovation need(s) expressed by the participating company. Presentations will be pitched following this four-week period for consideration by the company’s representative and a group of investors.

Contact Bryan Barringer at bbarringer@tennsmart.org to learn more about this program.

The Drive Electric Tennessee (DET) “Local Government EV Action Plan” series was created by DET’s Policies & Programs Working Group. This multi-chapter video series was created with municipalities in mind to give local officials an opportunity to learn how to best implement EVs and EV charging infrastructure within their communities.

The North American Council for Freight Efficiency (NACFE) has released the Charging Forward with Electric Trucks report. The report focuses on charging considerations for commercial battery electric vehicles currently in production for freight delivery. One tool included within the report is Steps to Implement Truck Charging, which discusses ten common elements for fleet electrification to successful deployment.

Visit the TDEC Office of Energy Programs Website at http://www.tn.gov/environment/energy.

Past Monthly Newsletters: 

May 2023

April 2023

March 2023

For more information or to submit an idea for a future Monthly Transportation Edition, contact:

Audrey Jackson, Communications Officer
TDEC Office of Energy Programs
615-917-6683 or audrey.jackson@tn.gov

OR

Alexa Voytek, Deputy Director, OEP Programs
U.S. DOE State Energy Program / Innovation & Transportation / Communications
TDEC Office of Energy Programs
 615-613-1096 or alexa.voytek@tn.gov

OR

Mark Finlay, Senior Energy Analyst, TDEC Office of Energy Programs
615-772-6011 or mark.finlay@tn.gov

Acknowledgement: This material is based upon work supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) under the State Energy Program Award Number DE-EE0009487

Disclaimer: This report was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an agency of the United States Government.  Neither the United States Government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or any agency thereof. The views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof.