GM is making big moves in its transition to an all-electric lineup, with plans to launch 30 new EV models globally by 2025. Naturally, that includes the Canadian market, but apparently, not every Canadian province is as quick to make the switch to EVs as some of the others. Now, one GM executive has asserted that the Ontario government could do more to encourage Canada’s electric vehicle adoption.
According to a report from Yahoo News, GM’s vice president of charging and energy, Hoss Hassani, recently spoke at the EV Charging Expo 2023 in Toronto, telling attendees that Ontario wasn’t making the switch to EVs as quickly as the rest of the country.
“Ontario, frankly, is a laggard,” Hassani said. “Toronto specifically, is a laggard.”
Ontario is the most populous providence in Canada, as well as the country’s largest vehicle market. However, according to the Yahoo report, which cites Statistics Canada, zero-emission vehicles accounted for just 8.1 percent of new light-duty vehicle registrations in the last three months of 2022 in Ontario. By comparison, British Columbia saw 18.6 percent, while Quebec saw 13.9 percent, as these two provinces offer electrified vehicle purchase and lease rebates.
According to Hassani, the policies of Ontario Premier Doug Ford was a major influence in the province’s relatively low EV registrations, specifically with the 2018 cancellation of a $14,000 incentive for qualifying vehicles under $75,000.
“The loss of that incentive did slow down adoption without a doubt,” Hassani told Yahoo Finance Canada. “It meant those who wanted to get into an affordable EV had more difficulty doing that. We see in B.C. and Quebec, where they have more of that incentive, they have higher adoption.”
Ontario Premier Doug Ford
Meanwhile, Premier Ford has previously characterized the incentive as benefitting “millionaires,” and instead places a focus on making Ontario a center for EV and EV battery manufacturing.
“Our government has taken a different approach, securing billions of dollars of electric vehicle investments and making sure Ontarians can buy electric vehicles made in Ontario by Ontario workers,” said a government spokesperson.
That being said, GM greatly appreciates Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s tremendous support for the EV transformation that has also enabled the automaker to be the first full-scale EV manufacturer in Ontario and Canada, with BrightDrop production at the GM CAMI plant in Ingersoll. In addition, GM continues to invest to help advance EV infrastructure in the country and continues to support Canada’s EV transformation efforts.
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Comments
Yet another example of current EV technology not being competitive without government intervention. Rather than have a competitive product GM (and other EV mfrs) rely on government to push an inferior product / technology on the public. Maybe instead use those incentive $ to bolster the public charging infrastructure???
Speaking as a US citizen, I can see that Canada also has its right-wing nut jobs that consistently try to impede progress. The sooner we change a large percentage of vehicles to EVs the better off we’ll be. We won’t be dependent on foreign oil and the price of fuel for ICE vehicles will come down. That said, progress always comes slowly it’s hard to change the mindset of people used to one way of life, and fear of something they don’t understand is even harder. The industry has a way to go to educate people about the benefits of EVs.
Book ’em Danno 😉
Ah yes, the old “progress…it’s automatically good because us lefties/greenies want it”….
It is not “impeding progress” to have electrically-propelled* vehicles sell on their own merits rather than by having the taxpayers subsidize the purchase. If that is right-wing nutjobism we need FAR more of it.
Horse-drawn wagons required lots of care of its propulsion source. That propulsion source left “exhaust” everywhere that dried out and got ground to dust, which in blew in the wind and caused respiratory illness. When that “engine” died, it was often left in the street to rot.
Gas propelled wagons came in; I believe Ford had one that preceded the Model T. They were far easier to maintain and care for and soon proved more economical. Even the progressive Teddy Roosevelt didn’t feel purchase of these vehicles should be propped up by the taxpayers. The free market soon took care of the rest.
I believe to this day that the two main reasons the original Prius took off like it did were a) They looked different; they stood out. Look at me. I am being good to the environment. b) California and other jurisdictions gave hybrids a “bye” for the carpool lanes. I met someone in LA who despised his Prius but it cut his commute time greatly.
*electrically-propelled. Emphasis is on PROPELLED. The fuel source is still either natural gas (“we want to ban your gas stove”) hydro (“tear down the dams, save the fish!”), or coal (Gack! Choke!). They SHIFT emissions, they do not get rid of them.
The PRACTICAL electric or alternate-fuel vehicles are on the way. I am not saying they aren’t. But, meanwhile, hours-long recharge times are a non-starter for many. The Ford Lightning is a toy to be shown off at the parking lot at work or down at the tavern. Just another 4-wheeled “Look-at-MEEE”; the Hummer and Cybertruck will be similar. Electrics will not be practical in cold climates until battery development changes. Meanwhile, let competition do its job.
amen
Then maybe they should get rid of the oil depletion allowance for oil and some of the other incentives the oil companies have had for over 100 years. Might have been a good idea not to bail out the auto industry when they were going under. I’m sure I could do a little research and find a dozen more government provided benefits for fossil fuel companies enjoyed over the years.
You might want to consider where you get your alternative facts from. As shown below.
“USA TODAY reached out to the social media user for comment.
Post misrepresents fuel required to charge electric car
It would take roughly 70 pounds of coal to produce the energy required to charge a 66 kWh electric car battery, said Ian Miller, a research associate at the MIT Energy Initiative. That’s about 15 pounds less than is claimed in the post.
The oil number is much farther off.
While the post claims that it takes six barrels of oil to charge a 66 kWh battery, Miller said the amount is closer to 8 gallons — the equivalent of 20% of one barrel of oil.
He said both of his estimates account for energy lost when fossil fuels are converted into electricity.
“I think the most important question is, ‘How do EVs and gas cars compare on emissions per distance?’,” said Miller. “In the US, using average electricity, EVs produce roughly 100 grams of CO2 per mile.”
He said this is more than 60% less than a typical gasoline-powered car that gets 30 mpg. Such a vehicle produces roughly 280 grams of CO2 per mile.
“If you switch to an electric vehicle, even if you’re using fossil fuels (to charge), it’s just simply not true that you’ll be using more fossil fuel,” said Jessika Trancik, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who studies the environmental impact of energy systems.
However, she emphasized electric cars in the U.S. are not typically charged using only energy from coal or oil.
Fact check:Photo shows privately constructed EV charger in Australia, botches math on efficiency
The U.S. electricity grid relies on a diversity of energy sources, of which oil and coal together make up about 20 percent, according to a DOE spokesperson. This amount is likely to continue to drop as renewable energy proliferates in the U.S.
“Switching to an electric vehicle means that you can use other sources, including less carbon-intensive natural gas, and even less carbon-intensive electricity sources like nuclear, solar and wind energy, which also carry with them health benefits in the form of reduced air pollutant emissions,” said Trancik.”
No reply, only a thumbs down. That happens when you can’t back up the alternative facts you shout at the top of your lungs WITH NO PROFF!
The US was not dependent on foreign oil until the idiot we have in the White House started canceling pipelines and oil exploration.
So, we haven’t been held hostage ever since the 70s when all of the oil rich states set the price of oil and it went from about .35 to .40 cents a gallon to over a $1.50 a gallon. That was Bidens fault too. You really need to stop opening your mouth to change feet! Remember, the oil companies in the U.S. went right along with it and raised their prices also.
I think George Carlin said it best, how in the world do we think were going to save the planet if we cant even take care of ourselves. We don’t care for one another so what makes us think we can save the planet. The planet is fine, its the people that are focked. He went on to say that self-righteous environmentalists are usually always these white bourgeois rich liberals who think they know better than you. The planet has been thru alot worse than a 100th of percent of C02 in its lifetime, weve had earthquakes, volcanoes, plate tectonics, continental drift, solar flares, sun spots, magnetic storms, the magnetic reversal of the poles multiple times, hundreds of thousands of years of bombardment by comets, asteroids, meteors, worldwide floods, tidal waves, worldwide fires, erosion, cosmic rays, recurring ice ages, and somehow we think that some evs are gonna make a difference? The arrogance of that alone is asinine.
I guarantee you, the hatred people have toward one another and the misuse if technology will destroy this world far faster than global warming or climate change- perceived or otherwise.
In the 1960s it was we are gonna run out of oil and the the glaciers are melting, in the 1970s it was there was another ice age coming in 10yrs and florida was gonna be under water in by the 80s, then in the 1980s it was acid rain was gonna wipe out all the vegetation and crops, then in the 1990s it was the ozone will be depleted and the sun will bake us all to a crisp, the come the 2000s when all of the ice caps would be melted and the entire southeastern us would be under water, and guess what? None of that happened, yet we the us tax payer got taxed for it, wtfu people, they have been lying to us the whole time, and if you think that what they say is true realize you are exactly what they want, you are the sheep that goes flying over a cliff in the name of what?
The lefties/greenies don’t care about their embarrassing track record of failed predictions and guesses.
They’re onto their next “sky-is-falling” crisis because jumping on board and feeling good about it is paramount.
It’s also gives them their self-made bludgeon to beat up on people who disagree, resulting in the misguided power they crave.
The Covid vaccination chaos and censoring was a perfect example of this.
Never expect a lefty/greenie to admit they’ve been wrong. It’s too embarrassing.
Sticking your head in the sand will not help. I’m pretty sure in the 60s what they were saying was if we don’t change the way we are doing thing’s by these dates some of these things will happen. If you remember what it was like back then, I do. I was driving across Texas and somewhere around 20 or so miles out the ground was black and while driving for quite some time and I finally came across a coal fired plant. So, today I’m pretty sure that has been cleaned up and is not the problem it was then. Although still a problem. Also, being the owner of a Smog check station in Ca. I smogged vehicles form that era and had NOx off the charts as well as Co and hydrocarbons that could not be read they were so high. Today, these readings are 100 times better and the reading on some vehicles reading almost 0. Except CO2. So, things have changed and the predictions of the 80’s has been revised because thing have been done to slow the progress of those problems.
Do yourself a favor and look up a picture of the ICE caps and glaciers in the 60s and compare them too today. You will find that there has been a tremendous loss. Also, as far as the rising of the seas you might want to look at Miami and the water pumps, they are using to try to keep it from flooding. Ya, it didn’t happen in the 80s but it is starting to happen in the 2000s and it is getting worse.
Just because you don’t care to come out from under your bubble doesn’t mean it won’t happen BECAUSE IT IS HAPPENING.
“The mass of the Antarctic ice sheet has changed over the last decades. Research based on observations from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellites (2002-2017) and GRACE Follow-On (since 2018 ) indicates that between 2002 and 2020, Antarctica shed approximately 150 gigatons of ice per year, causing global sea level to rise by 0.4 millimeters per year.”
Florida’s state Legislature began meeting in session Tuesday.
“In an attempt to protect properties from steadily rising sea levels, state Sen. Tom Wright, R-New Smyrna Beach, and Rep. Tom Leek, R-Ormond Beach, filed identical bills, State Bill 1504 and House Bill 1133. Both are titled “Coastal Construction and Preservation.”
According to the bills, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection would be required, rather than authorized, to issue permits for “rigid coastal armoring structures,” or seawalls, as long as they meet the qualifications. It’s not something that conservation organizations are happy about.”
I stand by my comments. You sure can tell the nut jobs come out of the woodwork whenever anything about EVs come up.
Why don’t you EV haters just stick to the ICE postings on GM Authority.
I actually know why, because you only listen to right wing media and they are in bed with big oil. Billions of MY tax dollars go to support these bloated monopolies.
Drive whatever you want, but stop telling everyone else what to drive.
Republicans are supposed to be about freedom but that freedom is only for people with your beliefs.
I don’t “hate” EVs. They presently don’t suit my needs. If you want ions, please get one and enjoy many happy miles. Just don’t require the taxpayers to subsidize your desires.
“Drive whatever you want, but stop telling everyone else what to drive”.
You think this what the lefties/greenies want?
I won’t use your terms to define who wants an EV, but everyone should have a choice. You guys complain about the government funding EVs, but I don’t hear a peep about the government funding big oil. EVs are evolving every day, battery technology is improving every day. I own one and they are just a better way of transportation, I don’t care how the power is generated, if some people do that’s fine. I want a reasonably priced vehicle that is cheap to drive and needs almost 0 maintenance. The EV gives me that. So drive your 3-ton truck, I don’t care but don’t complain about the government funding EVs until you also complain about them funding big oil.
Danno, you’re walking a fine line here.
The right hasn’t been the side that pushes policy on people, unlike the left who seem to be in favor of endless mandates, lockdowns, higher taxes, the general EV push, what vaccinations one must take, no natural gas appliances….the list goes on and on. It’s always something new to satisfy the crazies on the left with any consequences left for the public to deal with or clean up.
“Drive whatever you want, but stop telling everyone else what to drive” has NOT been the rationale on the left, rather, it’s more right-leaning than you give credit for. That sentiment has been posted here on GMA countless times by countless other posters….and they’ve been told to shut up and get on board, or get left behind. A favorite tactic of the left.
Your big oil comments are reasonable, but as long as there’s a supplier of power, we’ll always be at their mercy. Big electric will be no better, and even worse, it’s literally controllable at the flip of a switch by some government official or committee…and you’re walking right into it.
Like I’ve posted before, rolling blackouts and reduced power output are going to be on the table at the whim of every power-hungry corrupt politician and his group of treehuggers who have some score to settle, or new cause to get behind.
I find that absolutely frightening, and so should you.
This EV push is being disguised as benefiting the planet and the people, and maybe to some extent, that has merit, but there are far worse things that can come of this.
Lastly, I don’t think many people, including me, have a problem with EVs being incorporated into society, so you, the buyer, can have your choice. But choice has been a very foreign word to the left for many years now.
Being against subsidies to big energy work better as a big reason to stop immigration.
We agree on some things, however your first sentence is questionable. The right isn’t the one pushing policy on others. Ask that question to a woman who wants an abortion in Georgia. Both parties have their agendas, to say otherwise is just not true.
I’m not going to debate abortion other than suggesting there are plenty of options to get one, or avoid one altogether by not getting into that position. This is a moral debate that will last forever.
The problem I have with EVs is the corrupt entities that won’t be able to resist the power to control you and me. The EPA is an entity that would easily do this under their preferred administration.
They, through law or fiat, can and will ration or shut off your power “for the greater good”. Once they start doing that to you, what recourse do you think you’ll have?
I wasn’t debating abortion. I just wanted to point out that both parties try to make people on the other side bend to their beliefs. The only thing we’re ever really going to agree on is that we’re never going to agree.
In other news…there are now only 3 provinces in Canada.