While electric vehicle manufacturing investments have been rising for the past nine years, a new report from the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) found that the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022 kicked things into overdrive, leading to $188 million invested to date – $114 billion of it in the last year and a half.
In “U.S. Electric Vehicle Manufacturing Investment and Jobs: Characterizing the Impacts of the Inflation Reduction Act,” the EDF found that all of these investments also led to 195,000 electric vehicle-related jobs throughout the country. About 100,000 of those developed since the passage of the IRA, and could lead to more than 876,000 more jobs throughout the economy overall.
“American electric vehicle manufacturing continues to race forward, driven by historic federal policies that have catalyzed tremendous investment and job creation,” Ellen Robo, manager of transportation and clean air policy at EDF, said. “The U.S. is creating zero-emitting cars that save money at the gas pump, and communities across the country will benefit from cleaner air and a stronger economy.”
About 84 percent of the investments went to just 10 states throughout the United States. Currently, Georgia leads that pack, with $31.2 billion in investments made and 38,700 jobs created. Michigan followed in second, with more than $20 billion in announced manufacturing investments and 18,200 jobs created. In order, other major investors included: North Carolina, Tennessee, Nevada, Kentucky, South Carolina, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois.
By 2027, the report predicted that manufacturing facilities will be able to produce 1,099 GW hours of EV batteries and about 5.5 million new electric vehicles annually. Put against 2023 figures, that would mean new EVs would make up approximately 35 percent of all new cars sold.