The federal government will mandate the sale of electric vehicles (EV) by 2026, forcing at least 20% of all vehicles sold by that year to be zero-emission.."Zero-emission vehicles are where the rubber hits the road for cost-conscious Canadians who want to help the environment while getting off the roller-coaster of high gasoline prices," said Minister of Environment and Climate Change Steven Guilbeault.."With Canada's deep experience in auto-parts manufacturing, vehicle assembly, and with all of the critical minerals needed for batteries found here, Canada is well positioned to be a leader in making the vehicles that the world is looking to drive.".Only 7.2% of new car sales in Canada in 2022 were electric, up slightly from 5.2% in 2021. But car manufacturers and importers will need to boost sales quickly, as those who fail to meet EV sales targets by 2026 could be fined under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act..The percentage of electric vehicles needing to be sold will dramatically increase over the next decade. A total of 60% of all vehicles sold will need to be electric by 2030, and 100% by 2035..In order to keep track of these numbers, the government proposes tracking EV sales by issuing credits. Fully electric cars would be worth more in credits than plug-in hybrid versions..The federal government acknowledges plug-in hybrids will likely remain in higher demand in rural and northern areas of Canada. When exposed to colder temperatures, EVs are known to have reduced range, charge slower, and sometimes break down altogether..The federal government is also introducing new measures to make buying and charging an electric vehicle easier and more affordable. This includes investing in more than 50,000 electric vehicle charging stations, for a total of nearly 85,000 stations by 2027..A federal program that gives Canadians up to $5,000 and businesses up to $10,000 toward the cost of buying an electric vehicle will also be extended. More than 180,000 individuals and businesses have taken advantage of this program to date, according to Environment Canada..The provinces of Quebec and BC already have their own provincial sales mandates for EV. In BC, 15% of all vehicles sold are electric, followed by 11.4% in Quebec and 5.5% in Ontario. In all other provinces, that number is below 4%..Environment Canada estimated regulating the sale of EVs will result in net energy savings of $3.9 billion between 2026 and 2030. This will also lead to a reduction of 430 tonnes in greenhouse gas emissions, equivalent to three years of carbon emissions from Ontario..Transport Minister Omar Alghabra said the regulations will help Canada meet its "ambitious" EV sales targets, reduce road pollution, and achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.."Helping Canadians make the switch to zero-emission vehicles is crucial for reaching our climate goals: it keeps our air clean and helps people save money, all while positioning Canada as a leader on building cleaner vehicles," he said..Despite the federal government's enthusiasm for EVs, polls found many Canadians are skeptical of making the switch from gas-powered vehicles due to high costs. Recent in-house research by the Natural Resources department found 47% of Canadians would only buy a zero-emission vehicle if the price were about the same as an equivalent vehicle..Blacklock's Reporter also recently found in the past two years less than 5% of vehicles purchased by federal departments were electric. Of the 2,899 vehicles purchased by federal departments and agencies, a total of 137 were electric, 782 were hybrid, and the rest had gas and diesel engines..The Department of Environment bought 122 vehicles in the last two years. No new department vehicles were electric, while a total of 34 were hybrids.Former Ontario MPP and Conservative leadership candidate Roman Baber called the federal government's EV announcement an example of "socialism.""[Central planning] fails every time because the customer knows best and when there is no reward there is no production," he said."This isn't planning, this is compelling — what could go wrong? Free society, welcome to mandates!"
