OPINION
Michigan's governor says her state's future is battery-powered.By Jennifer M. Granholm | Newsweek Web Exclusive
Mar 31, 2009
In the 20th century, the road to the American Dream began in Michigan. Our state not only put the nation on wheels, but well-paying jobs in the auto industry helped create the broad middle-class prosperity that made our nation the envy of the world.
Today, both the American auto industry and the American middle-class are
facing wrenching challenges. And again the road to a stronger future for our country will begin in Michigan – where electric vehicles produced by a leaner, greener auto industry will reduce
our dangerous addiction to foreign oil. In February, Americans imported 62 percent of our oil, sending approximately $13 billion overseas to foreign governments, including places that threaten our own national interests. Our dependence on imported oil threatens our economic prosperity, our national security, and in a very real sense, the future of our planet.
With this tremendous threat comes an equally great opportunity – to replace our gas-powered fleet with a new generation of electric and plug-in electric vehicles. These
new vehicles won't just take us to and from work and around town. Since the batteries in these cars can also be used to store the carbon-free energy that can be harnessed by home-based solar cells and wind turbines, these vehicles could dramatically transform the way we light and heat our homes. In a real sense, your car battery could be your home's energy storage center. It will take some time to realize the full promise of this revolution in energy technology. But the electric vehicles that will make it all possible are just over the horizon.
For automakers, replacing the 100-year-old internal combustion engine with an electric power-train is both revolutionary and daunting. In a world where economic Darwinism threatens slow adapters with extinction, the American automakers know that they can either lead this historic transformation or become history themselves. Even though today they are engaged in a struggle to survive, the Big Three have chosen to lead the way to a new generation of electric vehicles. General Motors, Ford and Chrysler are scheduled to introduce electrified vehicles next year.
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In February, President Obama's administration announced $2 billion in grants from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act directed to the development of advanced batteries that will move the United States toward energy independence by putting one million American-made plug-in hybrid vehicles on the road by 2015. These advanced electric car batteries today are made by a small handful of companies in Asia. But America cannot trade dependence on foreign oil for dependence on foreign-made batteries when we have the know-how and the skilled workforce it takes to manufacture them here.
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