Michigan Grants Give Charge To Electric Vehicle Charging Stations

LANSING, MI — Approval has been given to install fast-charging stations for private and commercial electric vehicles at 32 locations across Michigan through a series of Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy grants totaling more than $1.8 million.

The approval was announced Friday by Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who said the grants will allow for the state to add 88 charging outlets along key travel routes throughout the state.

“Michigan put the world on wheels and will continue driving the world forward by leading on mobility and electrification,” Whitmer said Friday. “These grants demonstrate our commitment to expanding EV infrastructure across Michigan and build on the extraordinary work and investments of our innovative industry partners and EGLE to help support drivers who make the transition to electric vehicles.”

The Whitmer administration said expanding the statewide electric vehicle charging infrastructure supports the governor's plans to address impacts on climate change as well as accelerating the adoption of electronic vehicles in Michigan.

The growing interest in electric vehicles is a key part of reaching the state's goal of the MI Healthy Climate Plan of statewide carbon neutrality by 2050, officials said.

“Adding another 88 EV chargers – with commitment from private industry, utilities and state support – builds needed infrastructure for Michigan’s mobility evolution,” EGLE Director Liesl Clark said. “It’s an exciting time for the driving public as we see auto manufacturers and utilities right here in Michigan embrace this move to a cleaner mobility technology. The charger installations work hand-in-hand with EGLE’s support for an advanced mobility future, Catalyst Communities program to help municipalities prepare for the impacts of climate change and the Council on Climate Solutions’ work in developing the MI Healthy Climate Plan.”

Charge Up Michigan — which facilities the grants — offers up to $70,000 per charging station to public or private entities in partnership with a host site and the utility that serves the area. EGLE, the grant recipient and utility each pay a third of the cost for site preparation, charger installation, connections to the electrical power grid, signage and network fees, according to a news release.

Since the launch of the Charge Up Michigan program, EGLE has allocated more than $4 million for chargers at 76 locations with a total of 182 charging station outlets. Each charging station has at least two outlets, allowing multiple vehicles to charge simultaneously. More than half of the approved direct current fast charger projects have been installed and are operational, making them publicly available for EV drivers at any time, according to the state.

The grants are funded through Michigan’s allocation from the Volkswagen diesel settlement, officials said. The goal is to complete the statewide charging network by 2030.

Michigan currently has 480 publicly accessible charging stations featuring nearly 1,400 charging outlets, in addition to 146 private charging stations throughout the state.