Infrastructure

Competition aims to jumpstart EV battery workforce development

Competition aims to jumpstart EV battery workforce development
An electric vehicle is charging at a shopping center in Emeryville, Calif., Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2022. Congress is poised to pass a transformative climate change bill on Friday, Aug. 12. The crux of the long-delayed bill is to use incentives to accelerate the expansion of clean energy such as wind and solar power, speeding the transition away from the oil, coal and gas that largely cause climate change. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory announced the launch of the Battery Workforce Challenge, which includes a three-year collegiate engineering competition, focused on advanced battery design and development that will build a diverse, highly-skilled electric vehicle (EV) battery workforce to help the U.S. transition to electric mobility and clean energy.

Argonne, a DOE research and development center, will manage the competition for the co-sponsors DOE and Stellantis. This government and industry partnership will build the next generation of engineers, technicians, and workers to address the unprecedented demand for a domestic EV Battery workforce.

GO DEEPER: Check out the Factor This! energy storage podcast playlist, including episodes on battery storage, long-duration energy storage, gravity storage, and more. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

The Battery Workforce Challenge includes an advanced battery design and development student competition series that invites universities and vocational schools from across North America to design, build, test, and integrate an advanced EV battery into a future Stellantis vehicle. The challenge kicks off in the fall of 2023 and 11 universities will be selected to participate.

“American leadership in the global battery supply chain will be based not only on our innovation, but also on our skilled workforce of engineers, designers, scientists, production workers, and technicians,” said Deputy Assistant Secretary for Sustainable Transportation and Fuels at DOE, Michael Berube. “This comprehensive workforce program will build an educational ecosystem delivering training and education for high school graduates, and vocational and transitional workers, fostering a diverse talent pipeline of trained engineers, workers, and technicians who can charge North America’s battery industry forward.”

Additional workforce and education initiatives will complement the challenge, including a national Career-Connected Learning Management System to provide flexible, accessible, and equitable training for learners across the education pipeline.