General Motors will receive $7.5 million to assist in the development of a multilevel, inverter-integrated electric drive system, the U.S. Department of Energy announced Friday with 44 other projects the agency will fund in order to speed the transition to electric vehicles.
In total, DOE announced $87 million for projects through its Vehicle Technologies Office.
The selected projects range “from expanding convenient charging options, to growing the future workforce and developing the key technologies that will lead to our fully electrified transportation future,” Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm said in a statement.
The projects will help to grow the sector, speed EV adoption and manage the anticipated increase in electricity use. Electric transportation could add more than 130 billion kWh of demand to the nation’s grid by 2050, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
DOE said the projects will create home EV charging solutions, ensure underserved communities are included in the transition to electric transportation, provide for workforce training, and develop advanced materials for the sector.
Working with DOE’s Clean Cities coalitions, 10 projects “will demonstrate and deploy clean energy solutions to electrify school buses, food and consumer goods delivery bicycles, and even commercial fishing vessels,” DOE said.
In announcing the awards, DOE noted that “selection for award negotiations is not a commitment by DOE to issue an award or provide funding. DOE and the applicants will first undergo a negotiation and DOE may cancel award negotiations and rescind the selection for any reason.”
The agency also unveiled a $99.5 million funding opportunity for the 2023 fiscal year through its Vehicle Technologies Office. Projects will focus on ways to reduce “soft costs” in the development of EV charging infrastructure in underserved communities, lower battery costs, and educate consumers on EVs and EV charging.
Concept papers must be submitted by June 26 and full applications are due Aug. 11.
The funding opportunity “seeks the participation of underserved communities and underrepresented groups, and applicants are required to submit Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Plans describing actions taken to foster a welcoming and inclusive environment, support people from underrepresented groups in STEM, and advance equity,” the agency said.
