Michigan’s shift away from clean-energy grants and electric-vehicle manufacturing has accelerated as federal priorities changed after President Donald Trump took office in January, according to an AP report based on analysis from Atlas Public Policy and reporting by Bridge Michigan.
The analysis found that Michigan has experienced roughly $540 million in climate-related federal grant cancellations or holds since Inauguration Day. It traces much of that total to the federal Solar for All Program, along with dozens of other canceled or proposed cancellations affecting energy efficiency, climate resilience and related infrastructure.
Annabelle Rosser, a research analyst with the national firm who is quoted in the reporting, said the Michigan picture “certainly mirrors what we’re seeing nationally.” The report frames the pattern as part of a broader federal retreat from programs tied to climate and renewable energy, which Michigan officials and companies had counted on for investments and timelines.
The largest portion of the canceled funding identified in the reporting came through the Solar for All Program, a $7 billion Environmental Protection Agency fund intended to expand solar energy in disadvantaged communities. The report said Michigan had been slated to receive a $156 million grant and that Native American tribes in the state were expecting part of a $62 million grant shared with other Great Lakes tribes.
Dana Nessel, Michigan’s attorney general, sued over the Solar for All Program grant cancellations. The reporting said Nessel and other states argued the administration “unilaterally and illegally terminated” the program and overstepped checks and balances to cancel congressionally approved funding, and that the suit joined 22 other states.
Beyond solar, the report said the federal government canceled or proposed to cancel more than 20 Michigan grants ranging from $31.7 million for a Detroit energy-efficient window glass factory for LuxWall Inc. to $14,000 for a west Michigan climate resilience project. The reporting also listed other canceled awards, including $28.2 million for TS Conductor to build a high-capacity power line plant in Erie, $20.4 million for Ecoworks’ plan to create climate resilience hubs from houses of worship in Detroit, and $20 million grants connected to energy efficiency projects for tribal homes and additional resilience hubs in Benton Harbor.
The report described an additional freeze affecting Michigan’s broader energy-efficiency plans: it said the Trump administration froze a $20 billion federal “green bank” network expected to finance hundreds of millions of dollars for housing construction and rehabilitation, insulation and factory energy-efficiency improvements. It added that Trump administration officials have signaled more cancellations could follow as they review tens of billions of dollars in clean-energy funds awarded by the previous administration.
Within that shift, the report said there was an exception: the federal government continued disbursements from a $1.5 billion loan authorized in 2024 to support the reopening of the Palisades nuclear power plant, and in December announced another $400 million to develop two new reactors at the site. Chris Wright, the US secretary of energy, was quoted as saying: “President Trump has made clear that America is going to build more energy, not less, and nuclear is central to that mission.”
The grant cancellations were paired in the reporting with changes in Michigan manufacturing investment plans that had earlier been aligned with EV and clean-energy policy. The report said Michigan manufacturers announced collective $23.8 billion in new investments tied to the energy transition between 2022 and 2024, mostly related to battery or EV plants, but that the trend had reversed by 2025.
Atlas Public Policy’s analysis, as described in the report, showed about $3 billion in canceled projects and disinvestment in 2025. It said automakers were scaling back EV plans and refocusing on gas and hybrid vehicle production, citing decisions by Ford and General Motors to scrap EV production plans at Michigan plants and retool to produce gas-powered vehicles.
Glenn Stevens, executive director of MichAuto, an affiliate of the Detroit Regional Chamber, was quoted as saying: “That’s just the way the market is shaking out right now.” The report said Trump officials have continued efforts to downplay climate change and de-emphasize renewable energy while embracing fossil fuels, and it said the EV market and industry investment may continue to face volatility into 2026.
The report cited several EV- and battery-related projects and outcomes tied to shifting policies and market conditions. It said one of the biggest EV-related cancellations involved the Gotion project, a planned $2.4 billion electric-vehicle battery plant near Big Rapids that state officials declared dead this fall, and it quoted Rosser saying multiple factors likely contributed, including “the rollback of the (Inflation Reduction Act) clean energy tax credits, softening demand for electric vehicles, and concerns about the company’s foreign ownership.”
Other losses described included the closure of a battery maker’s Michigan facilities and the cancellation of an under-construction EV charger, battery and hydrogen generator project at Detroit’s former Fisher Body site. The reporting also said TS Conductor’s high-voltage direct current conductor plant, initially planned for Erie using a since-canceled $28 million federal grant, shifted locations to South Carolina after receiving what TS Conductor CEO Jason Huang described as a “very generous incentive package.”
In addition, the report described how corporate ownership and timing changes have altered EV battery plans in Michigan, including the delay of a planned battery factory opening near Lansing and Ford scaling back an EV battery plant near Marshall with an updated opening timeline. The reporting said federal spokespeople did not respond to comment requests, and it included an example of Trump casting pro-gas policies as consumer benefits and job protection during a December announcement related to fuel economy standards.
This story was originally published by Bridge Michigan and is distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.