Feb 15 (Portal) – The Biden administration on Wednesday issued long-awaited final rules for its national grid of electric vehicle chargers, requiring the chargers to be built immediately in the United States and 55% of their cost from within the United States manufactured components date to 2024.
The White House hopes the new rules, enacted after nearly eight months of debate, will unleash the biggest transformation of the US driver landscape in generations. The goal is to provide consumers with unlimited access to a growing network of coast-to-coast electric vehicle charging stations, including Tesla Inc. (TSLA.O) Superchargers.
Companies hoping to secure $7.5 billion in federal funding for this network must also adopt the prevailing US standard for charging connectors, known as the “Combined Charging System” or CCS. use standardized payment options; a single identification method that works for all chargers; and work 97% of the time.
Tesla, the nation’s largest EV maker and charging company, plans to integrate the CCS standard and expand beyond its proprietary connectors, the administration said.
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“No matter what electric vehicle you drive, we want to make sure you can plug it in, know the price you’re going to pay and charge in a predictable, user-friendly experience,” Transport Secretary Pete Buttigieg told reporters in a preview of the rules.
The first tranche of the multibillion-dollar federal funds will now be rolled out to states in the coming weeks, forcing companies like Tesla, EVgo Inc (EVGO.O) and ChargePoint Holdings Inc (CHPT.N) to fight for their share of the funds from state governments .
The network is a key part of President Joe Biden’s plan to tackle climate change by electrifying 50% of all new car sales in the US by 2030. say proponents.
Manufacturers warned before the rules were released that introducing a quota for domestic components too early in the program rule would slow adoption. The new rules extend Made in America deadlines to give these companies more time to get their supply chain ashore.
Electric vehicle charger maker Tritium (DCFC.O) announced Wednesday that it will create more than 250 jobs at its Tennessee manufacturing facility, bringing the total to more than 750 jobs at the site. White House national climate adviser Ali Zaidi said that under Biden’s leadership, the number of EVs offered to consumers has doubled, as well as the number of charging stations and EV sales.
“So this is not a dream of the future. It’s literally steel in the ground. We see the Biden climate vision on wheels,” said Zaidi.
“BUILD AMERICA, BUY AMERICA”
Under the 2021 bipartisan Infrastructure Act, federal infrastructure projects such as electric vehicle chargers must source at least 55% of construction materials, including iron and steel, from domestic sources and have all manufacturing done immediately in the United States.
However, the Department of Transportation requested an exemption for electric vehicle charging stations, first proposing that by July this year at least 25% of the total cost of chargers come from American-made components, and then 55% by January 1, 2024.
The new rules remove the two-step process and begin imposing the component cost provision at 55% in July 2024. Chargers must be assembled in a US factory, and all iron or steel charger housings must be manufactured in the United States effective immediately.
The United States and its ally Mexico and the European Union have fallen out over the protectionist policies implemented by Biden. The United States and the EU set up a task force last year to look into American laws that Europeans fear will discriminate against foreign electric car makers.
EV chargers require iron and steel for some of their most important parts, including the internal structural frame, the heating and cooling fans, and the power transformer. Chargers with cabinets housing the product require even more steel, which in some cases accounts for up to 50% of the total cost of the chargers.
Global demand for electric vehicle chargers is straining the supply chain, making it difficult, if not impossible, to meet Made-in-America standards and speed up the construction of new chargers, states and companies warned in comments to the Department of Transportation.
The new rules would allow Tesla to keep its unique connectors, but add a permanently attached CCS connector or adapter that charges a CCS-compliant vehicle, similar to a gas pump that has a separate handle for gasoline and diesel.
Tesla told the DOT that the plan is “aggressive” and “given the pace and scale of deployment, could result in a shortage of available compliant charging stations,” records show.
But labor lawyers argue that delaying or circumventing the requirements undermines Congress’ intent and penalizes companies that complied early on.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to do this right,” said Scott Paul, President of the Alliance for American Manufacturing. “The challenge with expansion is that it becomes a habit and the herd will always fight and hesitate.”
Reporting by Jarrett Renshaw in Philadelphia and Hyunjoo Jin in San Francisco; additional reporting by David Sherpardson; Adaptation by Heather Timmons, Matthew Lewis and Jonathan Oatis
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