CHARLOTTE — As the Trump administration rolls back Biden-era policies and incentives for electric vehicle purchases and manufacturers, advocates for the clean energy industry are sounding the alarm.
Zach Amittay, the Southeast advocate for E2, a nonpartisan organization representing business leaders and investors in the clean energy industry said currently the biggest challenge to the burgeoning business is uncertainty.
“There’s just so much that we don’t know about what funding will be dispersed,” he said. “What contracts will be honored, whether or not the package of clean energy tax credits that were passed during the Biden administration will be retained.”
During the Biden Administration, a mixture of business subsidies for manufacturers combined with tax incentives, federal grants and programs to encourage EV or clean energy purchases. Alex Campbell, a policy analyst with the North Carolina Budget and Tax Center, said that helped make it easier for clean energy manufacturers to see a future in the United States and a potential market for their products.
“There are cases specifically of CEOs and you know, management, who have explicitly referenced their choice to open up production in the United States as a direct result of these tax credits,” he said.
Across the Carolinas, roughly 50 projects were announced in the clean energy sector over the past two years, promising tens of thousands of jobs, Many of which were scheduled to start operations in 2025-2026.
One of the biggest examples has been the Toyota Battery Plant opening in Randolph County, promising 3,000 jobs. The company announced in February that it was still on track to ship its first EV batteries from its assembly line in April.
Amittay said not all businesses are moving forward quite as confidently. In Georgia, Freyr canceled plans for a $2.5 billion battery plant and a solar panel manufacturing facility in Minnesota announced its putting a paused on its $400 million contract, as it waits for more clarity from the Trump administration.
For now, Amittay said he doesn’t know of any projects in the Carolinas specifically on the verge of cancelation or dramatically changing plans, yet. Instead, most seem to be in a sense of limbo.
“They need to sit back and wait for the dust to settle, so to speak, before they can figure out what’s feasible and what still pencils out for them,” he said.
To Amittay, the projects themselves are not about politics. Though they were touted by the Biden administration as a way to fight climate change, Amittay sees them as an economic opportunity.
“This is, you know, jobs being created, investments in local communities, many of them rural communities that might have been, you know, hurt by previous offshoring of manufacturing operations,” he said.
According to E2, roughly two-thirds of clean energy projects nationwide are in Republican-controlled congressional districts, including North Carolina’s 10th. That’s where Forge is planning a Gigafactory to produce lithium-ion batteries and create roughly 200 jobs.
Rep. Pat Harrigan, who represents the district, said he believes if the company and its business model are sound, any policy changes shouldn’t mean a halt to progress.
“Strong industries are forged through competition, innovation, and consumer demand—not by forcing taxpayers to prop up an industry that cannot stand on its own two feet,” he said in a statement.
Instead of considering it a handout to prop up clean energy, Amittay said he wants congressmen of both parties to look at these incentives from an America-First perspective.
“China is absolutely dominating the clean energy space, both in deployment, but maybe more importantly, in the manufacturing of clean energy solutions and technologies,” he said. “So it’s very important that Republican Congress members and leadership in both parties recognize that these investments are a way for the United States to establish itself as a global leader in the clean energy manufacturing space.”
He said that’s the message he’s giving to Congress as they work through the federal budget. No matter what, he believes that will give companies the clarity they need to plan for the future. The longer the process takes however, he said the harder it will be for companies to make major decisions on their long-term investments.
(VIDEO: NCDOT puts brakes on new EV chargers, awaiting guidance from Trump administration)
©2025 Cox Media Group
