Canada must up incentives, charging capacity to meet EV goals: industry groups
Global News
Electric vehicle sales have been on the rise in Canada over the years, and automotive industry groups say Canadian governments are falling behind on the meeting the demand. Why?
Canadian governments must up incentives and increase the amount of charging infrastructure in the country to meet Ottawa’s electric vehicle (EV) goals, industry groups say.
The federal government has pledged to mandate at least 20 per cent of new passenger vehicles sold in Canada be zero-emission vehicles by 2026. That will increase to at least 60 per cent by 2030, and to 100 per cent by 2035.
An analysis released Friday by the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association, the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association and Global Automakers of Canada shows Canada is not providing consumers with adequate purchase incentives to make the switch to EVs, and is nearly 1.7 million EV chargers short of what is required to power an increasingly electrified vehicle fleet.
“We’re fully committed to electrifying the fleet and … decarbonizing our industry.… This transition is happening, but it’s happening perhaps in some ways faster than the industry thought it was going to happen,” David Adams, president and CEO of the Global Automakers of Canada, said during a news conference on Friday.
“We want to work with the government and we want to work with other industry partners, but we need to make sure these targets are realistic and that ultimately we achieve the real goal, which is reducing carbon emissions from transportation.”
Canadian governments need to see eye to eye on incentives designed for new EV purchases in Canada, the groups say.
Currently, the federal government offers up to $5,000 towards the purchase of any new electric vehicle in the country. On top of that, provinces like British Columbia and Quebec offer up to $3,000 and $8,000, respectively, towards the purchase of a new EV. New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Yukon also offer similar incentives.
Ontario, which used to offer a rebate until Premier Doug Ford canned it in 2018, provides up to $1,000 incentive towards the purchase of a used EV and up to $1,000 for scrapping an old gas car.
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