Coming to a sidewalk or community hall near you: your own taxpayer funded electric vehicle (EV) charger..Ostensibly to speed up the transition to zero emission vehicles, Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) is shelling out almost $1 billion to non-profit groups, public institutions and local governments and to fund install EV chargers in public places like sidewalks, multi-resident apartment buildings and workplaces to electrify vehicle fleets..The moves are just the latest in a series of under-the-radar-spending announcements from NRCan to the tune of $2 billion in the last two weeks alone..Eligible organizations include for-profit companies, condo boards, indigenous businesses or communities as well as provincial, territorial, regional or municipal governments or their departments or agencies. Federal departments and Crown corporations are not eligible for the grants..The list of approved organizations to date covers a broad brush, from the Manitoba Motor Vehicle Dealers Association, to Eco-West Canada, EPCOR, SaskPower and HydroQuebec in addition to the Governments of PEI, Yukon and the Northwest Territories — among others. Under the program, organizations will be eligible for up to $5 million up to in funding for local EV infrastructure, including EV chargers, to redistribute a maximum of $100,000 per project to local groups for the installation of EV chargers themselves..In a news release the NRCan said it hopes to have up to 84,500 new chargers installed nationwide by 2027 as part of a the multi-billion Zero Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Program, in collaboration with Infrastructure Canada and the Canada Infrastructure Bank. The program covers everything from developing batteries to subsidizing the purchase of actual EVs including Teslas. .Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was in Shawinigan, QB last week to tout the benefits of the government’s largesse while urging motorists to “go electric” as part of the drive to Net Zero. .“Canadian-made electric vehicle chargers are win-win-win: not only do they support good middle-class jobs and position Canada as a global leader on clean tech, they also make it easier than ever for Canadians to choose an EV as their next vehicle,” he said..About 35,000 chargers have been installed to date, a fraction of the 150,000 people who have taken advantage of purchase incentives to buy electric cars under the program. .The government has spent almost $1 billion on chargers since 2016 and has earmarked an additional $900 million to nearly triple the quantity and quality of the units, including so-called fast chargers. Also included are hydrogen filling stations.That’s on top of the $1.7 billion included in last year’s budget to extend the zero-emission vehicle purchase incentive program until March 2025, and the expansion of eligible vehicle models to include more vans, trucks and SUVs..“We're making electric vehicles more affordable and charging more accessible where Canadians live, work and play. Investing in more EV chargers will put more Canadians in the ‘driver's seat’ on the road to a net-zero future and help achieve our climate goals,” Natural Resources minister Jonathan Wilkinson said in a statement..According to NRCan, about 25% of Canada’s emissions are directly related to the transportation sector. .In a separate release, Wilkinson said NRCan is also working with municipalities to come up with building codes for “green” buildings, to the tune of $100 million.
Coming to a sidewalk or community hall near you: your own taxpayer funded electric vehicle (EV) charger..Ostensibly to speed up the transition to zero emission vehicles, Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) is shelling out almost $1 billion to non-profit groups, public institutions and local governments and to fund install EV chargers in public places like sidewalks, multi-resident apartment buildings and workplaces to electrify vehicle fleets..The moves are just the latest in a series of under-the-radar-spending announcements from NRCan to the tune of $2 billion in the last two weeks alone..Eligible organizations include for-profit companies, condo boards, indigenous businesses or communities as well as provincial, territorial, regional or municipal governments or their departments or agencies. Federal departments and Crown corporations are not eligible for the grants..The list of approved organizations to date covers a broad brush, from the Manitoba Motor Vehicle Dealers Association, to Eco-West Canada, EPCOR, SaskPower and HydroQuebec in addition to the Governments of PEI, Yukon and the Northwest Territories — among others. Under the program, organizations will be eligible for up to $5 million up to in funding for local EV infrastructure, including EV chargers, to redistribute a maximum of $100,000 per project to local groups for the installation of EV chargers themselves..In a news release the NRCan said it hopes to have up to 84,500 new chargers installed nationwide by 2027 as part of a the multi-billion Zero Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Program, in collaboration with Infrastructure Canada and the Canada Infrastructure Bank. The program covers everything from developing batteries to subsidizing the purchase of actual EVs including Teslas. .Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was in Shawinigan, QB last week to tout the benefits of the government’s largesse while urging motorists to “go electric” as part of the drive to Net Zero. .“Canadian-made electric vehicle chargers are win-win-win: not only do they support good middle-class jobs and position Canada as a global leader on clean tech, they also make it easier than ever for Canadians to choose an EV as their next vehicle,” he said..About 35,000 chargers have been installed to date, a fraction of the 150,000 people who have taken advantage of purchase incentives to buy electric cars under the program. .The government has spent almost $1 billion on chargers since 2016 and has earmarked an additional $900 million to nearly triple the quantity and quality of the units, including so-called fast chargers. Also included are hydrogen filling stations.That’s on top of the $1.7 billion included in last year’s budget to extend the zero-emission vehicle purchase incentive program until March 2025, and the expansion of eligible vehicle models to include more vans, trucks and SUVs..“We're making electric vehicles more affordable and charging more accessible where Canadians live, work and play. Investing in more EV chargers will put more Canadians in the ‘driver's seat’ on the road to a net-zero future and help achieve our climate goals,” Natural Resources minister Jonathan Wilkinson said in a statement..According to NRCan, about 25% of Canada’s emissions are directly related to the transportation sector. .In a separate release, Wilkinson said NRCan is also working with municipalities to come up with building codes for “green” buildings, to the tune of $100 million.
