In trip to Asia, Sen. Duckworth touts Illinois as an electric vehicle hub

U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) simply bought again from a visit to Taiwan and South Korea, the place she pitched Illinois as a viable candidate for electrical automobile producers.

A member of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, Duckworth met with leaders of each nations to debate opening battery vegetation within the state.

Duckworth informed WBEZ’s Reset that Illinois’ geographical location is a bonus.

“No higher place in Illinois, the place we’re proper in the course of the nation,” Duckworth mentioned. “It makes it simpler to ship these batteries throughout.”

This assembly comes as Illinois continues to lose out on battery vegetation to neighboring states.

Common Motors is constructing a $2.3 billion battery plant in Ohio, whereas Ford is partnering with South Korean firm SK Innovation to construct three battery mega-factories in Kentucky and Tennessee.

And final month, Samsung and Dutch car firm Stellantis introduced that they’re constructing a $2.5 billion plant an hour east of Illinois’ border in central Indiana. Samsung had beforehand thought of a website in Regular.

However Mark Denzler, president and CEO of the Illinois Producers’ Affiliation, says his group is difficult at work with state officers making an attempt to convey producers right here.

“We’re a transportation hub,” Denzler mentioned. “We’re the one state within the nation with all seven class one railroads, and so Illinois can also be a superb vacation spot for a battery facility.”

Denzler says auto vegetation often prefer to have the battery vegetation close by. At present, there are 4 EV auto vegetation in Illinois: Rivian in Regular, Lion Electrical in Joliet, Stellantis in Belvidere and Ford in Chicago.

Whereas these components make Illinois engaging to producers, Denzler says the state’s vitality grid issues could trigger a snag.

A lot of Central and Downstate Illinois sits on the Midcontinent Unbiased System Operator grid. In line with a brand new report from the North American Electrical Reliability Company, areas served by this grid are at an elevated threat for blackouts this summer time.

And since Illinois is within the technique of shutting down fossil gasoline vegetation by 2045, Denzler says vitality costs are hovering.

“So for producers, that could be 10s of 1000s, a whole bunch of 1000s and even hundreds of thousands of {dollars} extra in increased vitality costs,” Denzler mentioned. “We’re seeing that the upper charges and the dearth of capability come into play right here most likely earlier than different states.”

However Denzler says this is only one piece of a bigger image.

“We’re constructing an EV ecosystem right here,” Denzler mentioned. “Which is absolutely essential.”

Duckworth echoed the identical sentiments throughout her go to final week. She says Illinois has invested hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in charging stations and different “pleasant insurance policies” towards EV.

“We have now our personal state incentives for getting electrical autos on high of the federal ones. Not each state has executed that,” Duckworth mentioned. “And the state has additionally handed a number of items of laws that promotes the constructing of electrical automobile parts.”

The query that continues to be is whether or not these incentives can be sufficient to lure battery producers away from neighboring competitors.