|
|
| News and Events:
Upcoming Events and Funding Opportunities:
Resources and Guides:
| |
| TVA Joins Utilities to Form Electric Highway Coalition
TVA and five other utilities have announced the formation of the Electric Highway Coalition, which will enable access to a network of public fast charging stations for electric vehicle drivers on major highway systems in the Midwest and South, on the Atlantic Coast, and in the Gulf and Central Plains regions. The Coalition utilities—TVA, American Electric Power, Dominion Energy, Duke Energy, Entergy Corp., and Southern Co.—are each taking steps to provide electric vehicle charging solutions within their service territories. The Coalition represents an unprecedented effort to offer convenient charging options across different utility territories and will allow regional electric vehicle travel without interruption.
This collaboration follows last month’s announcement that TVA and TDEC will partner to develop a statewide electric vehicle fast charging network in Tennessee to power the growth of electric vehicles across the state and reduce barriers to transportation electrification. Click here to read more about TVA’s involvement in the Electric Highway Coalition.
| |
| EV and Battery Manufacturing Investment in Tennessee
Governor Bill Lee and TN Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe recently announced that Microvast, Inc. will invest $220 million to establish a new electric vehicle battery manufacturing facility in Clarksville. The facility, which will create 287 new jobs, will conduct research and development as well as produce electric vehicle battery cells, modules, and packs. To do this, Microvast will renovate and expand an existing plant in the area, which formerly manufactured components for vehicle brakes. Employee recruitment for this facility may begin by the end of 2021, and the company anticipates beginning operation in the summer of 2022.
Additionally, General Motors (GM) has revealed its intent to construct a second U.S. electric vehicle battery plant (in addition to the $2 billion factory currently under construction in Ohio), which industry representatives speculate could be located near the company’s existing facility in Spring Hill. This follows the announcement earlier this year that GM intends to phase out gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles by converting its entire passenger vehicle fleet to all-electric drivetrains by 2035. Last year, GM announced a $2 billion investment in its Spring Hill operations to build fully electric vehicles such as the all-new Cadillac LYRIQ, the single largest expansion investment in Tennessee’s history. Click here to read more about how Tennessee is becoming a nationwide leader in electric vehicle manufacturing.
| |
| 2020 Tennessee Electric Vehicle Survey
Electric vehicles represent a growing portion of Tennessee’s transportation sector. With around 11,000 electric vehicles on the road in Tennessee today, understanding how and where electric vehicles are used can better inform planning, policy, and future technology-related investments. To better understand Tennessee’s electric transportation landscape, Drive Electric Tennessee and Tennessee Clean Fuels are undertaking a large-scale survey of electric vehicle owners across the state. All responses will be anonymized and will be utilized to provide insights on electric vehicle use across Tennessee. The data will also be shared with the U.S. Department of Energy, as part of Tennessee Clean Fuels’ annual report on alternative fuel and advanced vehicle technology use within the state.
| |
|
| UPCOMING EVENTS AND FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
| |
|
The Tennessee Advanced Energy Business Council (TAEBC) will hold its 2021 Annual Meeting in a virtual format on March 25 from 12:00 PM to 1:30 PM Eastern. Sponsored by Seven States Power Corporation, this event is free to TAEBC members, government, and elected officials. Vanessa Z. Chan, Chief Commercialization Officer and Director of the U.S. DOE Office of Technology Transitions, will provide a keynote speech on advanced energy opportunities and trends. Other speakers include Michael Garrabrant, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Stone Mountain Technologies, and Ryan Stanton, Senior Consultant for Strategic Energy Initiatives at TDEC OEP. Click here to register for the Annual Meeting.
| |
| Webinar Series: Preparing Rural Communities for EV Adoption
Tennessee Technological University (TTU) is hosting a 2021 spring webinar series titled "Preparing Rural Communities for Electric Vehicles—The User Experience;" the series will leverage insights from the university’s rural electric vehicle testbed project in the state’s Upper Cumberland region. The first webinar in the series, scheduled for March 31 from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM Central, will explore rural utility perspectives and planning considerations tied to the development of regional electric vehicle charging stations. The webinar will also feature national utility representatives and their perspectives on working with rural utilities and audiences through electric vehicle education and infrastructure programs.
Finally, the webinar will provide information on how eligible Upper Cumberland Tennesseans can test drive an electric vehicle at no cost for up to two weeks. Interested individuals or organizations should contact TTU’s Dr. Pingen Chen at pchen@tntech.edu or can visit this webpage for more information. Register for the webinar here.
| |
| FTA Low-No Program Funding for Transit Buses
The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) recently announced up to $180 million in competitive grant funds through its Low or No Emissions (Low-No) Bus Program. FTA’s Low-No Program helps project sponsors purchase or lease zero-emission and low-emission transit buses and can support the acquisition, construction, and leasing of required supporting facilities. Eligible applicants for this opportunity include direct recipients of FTA grants under the Section 5307 Urbanized Area Formula program, states, local governmental authorities, and Indian Tribes. Application instructions can be found on FTA’s website at http://transit.dot.gov/howtoapply; proposals must be submitted by April 12.
Tennessee’s urbanized area transit agencies may use State match funds in combination with the Low-No Program through the TDOT Office of Public Transportation, Division of Multimodal Transportation Resources. To do so, such agencies must complete and submit advanced State match request forms, as specified under the IMPROVE Act.
Proposals for funding eligible projects in rural (non-urbanized) areas must be submitted as part of a consolidated state proposal. Interested transit agencies in non-urbanized areas are encouraged to contact TDOT’s Kaitlyn McClanahan directly at Kaitlyn.McClanahan@tn.gov.
| |
| Transportation Energy Data Book 39
The Transportation Energy Data Book, produced by ORNL for the U.S. DOE Vehicle Technologies Office, is a compendium of data on transportation with an emphasis on energy. ORNL released the 39th edition of this desktop reference this month; the Data Book details petroleum and overall energy consumption in the U.S. transportation sector as well as both light- and heavy-duty vehicle production, sales, and use. Some highlights include:
- In 2019, the U.S. consumed 20.5 million barrels of petroleum per day, or 21% of the global total.
- In 2019, transportation energy use accounted for about 28% of total U.S. energy use.
- Cars and light-duty trucks accounted for 57% of U.S. transportation energy use in 2018.
- 4,715,000 cars were sold in 2019, which represented 28% of new light-duty vehicle sales.
- The average U.S. household vehicle travels 11,200 miles per year.
| |
|
|
|
|
