Georgia is looking toward one number to predict the future of its electric vehicle industry: 5%. That’s the tipping point for mass electric vehicle use — where adoption of a new technology rapidly accelerates.
The U.S. teetered over the tipping point this year. In January, around 5.3% of total automobile sales were for electric vehicles. This number climbed to 5.6% in the second quarter.
As sales inclined in the U.S., so did activity in Georgia’s EV industry. Rivian Automotive Inc. and Hyundai Motor Group are creating more than 15,000 jobs combined with new plants near Covington and Savannah. Parts manufacturers and suppliers are following, including Denkai America and Battery Resourcers.
“I think by 2030, we expect 1 million EVs in the state of Georgia,” said Bentina Terry, a senior vice president of customer strategy and solutions at Georgia Power. “That’s rapid deployment where we are right now.”
On Aug. 11, Atlanta Business Chronicle hosted a Defining Atlanta discussion with business leaders and economic development officials about the growth of Georgia’s electric vehicle manufacturing and supply chain.
There’s a higher demand for electrical, mechanical and computer science engineers than what is available.
“That leads us to import engineers,” said Lewis Stallworth, a business development manager for Bosch Security and Safety Systems. “But other countries have figured out ‘we need to stop exporting talent.’”
The skill set needed to maintain an electric motor differs from diesel and combustion engines, as does the amount of hands needed.
“The number of bodies we need will be less. It’s a more attractive, high-paying job. The longevity and quality of life in that job is better. You’re not sustained to the fumes of oil and petrochemicals,” Stallworth said.
Bosch is partnering with universities and technical colleges to bolster technical training, Stallworth said.
The state of Georgia is also focused on workforce development as one of the main focuses of its Electric Mobility and Innovation Alliance, said Brittany Young, chief operating officer of the Georgia Department of Economic Development.
Plus, Georgia has a long-running training initiative called Georgia Quick Start, which creates customized workforce development for companies. In both the Hyundai and Rivian project agreements, the state outlined plans to create training services and workforce recruitment programs for the companies and its affiliate suppliers.
There’s a need for more charging infrastructure throughout the U.S., particularly for drivers living in apartments or other multifamily dwellings, Terry said. The federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law outlines a goal to build a network of 500,000 EV chargers that accommodates vehicles from any automaker, but more work still needs to be done.
In the third quarter of 2021, Georgia had 53,416 electric vehicles on the road, but only 3,754 charging ports, according to research group EVAdoption LLC.
This ratio — around 14 electric vehicles to charger ports — lags far behind other states with the top 10 highest number of EVs, including New Jersey, which has a ratio of 41, and Florida, which has a ratio of 19.
Tesla Inc. (Nasdaq: TSLA), the leading company for electric vehicle sales, has different charging ports than other manufacturers, complicating public charging stations, Terry said.
“One thing we have to figure out is how we can get the industry to think about how they can make it better for the consumer by having things that can be used across all different vehicles,” Terry said.
UPS (NYSE: UPS) is starting to electrify some of its fleet, but electric vehicles aren’t always conducive to cargo deliveries, said President of U.S. Government Affairs Michael Kiely.
“We need vehicles that go 750 miles at full capacity,” said Kiely. “You need a lot of batteries to be able to do that, which takes away from the cargo capacity.”
The shipping giant ordered 10,000 electric vehicles from United Kingdom-based manufacturer Arrival in 2020. Those vehicles will start rolling out in the next few months, Kiely said, and are being tested in London.
High-powered chargers could help solve for that problem, said Kiely. Plus, UPS is studying other zero-emission energy sources, such as renewable natural gas and hydrogen. UPS has more than 13,000 alternative fuel vehicles as part of its “rolling laboratory” initiative, Kiely said.
Several countries have piloted alternatives to solely relying on charging stations, which can take as long as a half a day.
Norway, for example, has tested swappable battery stations. But the U.S. is not at a point where it could hot-swap batteries, Terry said, because of the lack of consistency among manufacturers.
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