Last week’s U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) announcement placing a freeze on the federal government’s EV charging infrastructure program has already prompted responses from a range of industry interests—including at least one that counts automakers among its membership.
In a statement first reported by Reuters, the Electric Drive Transportation Association (EDTA) asked the Trump administration to restore the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program, which the organization called “an effective and important element of a truly strategic energy policy that promotes U.S. innovation, domestic investment, and energy security.”
The EDTA counts six automakers among its members. Ford, General Motors, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Stellantis, and Toyota are part of the group along with 20 other interests including charging networks, charging-hardware suppliers, and the retail giant Walmart. Although this pushback was a statement of the group and its interests, it’s unclear which companies might have, for instance, signed onto a letter pushing for this rollback of Trump administration policy.
2023 Nissan Ariya at EVgo charging station
“We urge the Administration to quickly resume the critical work of the program and minimize uncertainty for states and their businesses, who have invested in infrastructure to serve local and national goals for advanced transportation,” the EDTA statement said.Â
The Trump DOT move announced last Thursday rescinds previous guidance for the program, which was created under the 2021 infrastructure law to disperse funding for a $7.5 billion national network, on the way to a target of 500,000 EV chargers. The agency said it would fund projects already approved but freeze funding for new projects until revised guidance is issued.
2023 Toyota bZ4X at EVgo charging station
Under the NEVI framework, states issue plans showing how they would spend available funding. The DOT has said it will make states submit new plans once altered guidance is complete, which is likely to create additional uncertainty and slow a process that was just beginning to pick up speed, even if the money isn’t actually taken away.
Several of the EDTA’s member automakers are also partners in Ionna, which has suggested that it will take advantage of the NEVI program to reach its goal of 30,000 chargers by 2030. That plan makes Ionna the most likely charging-network rival to Tesla, which has already won many NEVI contracts. That creates more financial risk to charging companies, as the funding is placed in limbo—and a growing conflict of interest as Tesla CEO Elon Musk continues to act as an unofficial advisor to the Trump Administration.
