Minister Anand Announces New EV Chargers Coming to Ontario, Highlights Further Zero-Emission Vehicle Investments in Budget 2022

BRAMPTON, ON, April 11, 2022 /CNW/ - Natural Resources Canada

Transportation accounts for approximately one-quarter of Canada's emissions, and the Government of Canada is helping Canadians get around in cheaper, cleaner and faster ways to cut pollution and fight climate change. To this end, the government is continuing to make investments to ensure zero-emission vehicles are easier to use, more affordable to buy and built in Canada.

Today in Brampton, the Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of National Defence, on behalf of the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Natural Resources, announced a $445,000 investment in the Regional Municipality of Peel to install 80 electric vehicle (EV) chargers across the region. Funded through Natural Resources Canada's Zero-Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Program, all chargers will be available to Ontarians by the end of this year. The total cost of the Peel Climate Change Partnership project is more than $1.3 million.

Minister Anand highlighted several new measures to build on these efforts, including:

• Budget 2022's proposal to invest an additional $1.7 billion to extend the government's purchase incentive program until March 2025, and to expand the types of vehicle models eligible under the program, which would include more vans, trucks and SUVs.
• Budget 2022's proposal to provide $500 million in investments for the Canada Infrastructure Bank and $400 million in additional funding for the Zero-Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Program, both of which will support the Government's objective of adding 50,000 ZEV chargers to Canada's network.
• The federal government's efforts to provide more people in Brampton with access to cleaner public transportation, including the Canada Infrastructure Bank's (CIB) recent financial close with the City of Brampton on an investment of up to $400 million to help finance the acquisition of up to 450 zero-emission buses.

These investments will help bring Canada one step closer to meeting its ambitious goal of ensuring all new passenger vehicles sold in Canada are zero-emission by 2035. And just like our investments in everything from clean technology to nature protection to critical minerals, today's announcement is part of the Government of Canada's broader plan to build a cleaner, more prosperous economy with good jobs and clean air for Canadians now and into the future.

Quotes

"We're making electric vehicles more affordable and charging more accessible where Canadians live, work and play. Investing in more EV chargers, like the ones announced today in Ontario, will put more Canadians in the driver's seat on the road to a net-zero future and help achieve our climate goals."

The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson
Minister of Natural Resources

"We are facing some of the greatest challenges of our generation: an international security crisis in the context of Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a global pandemic and climate change. Canadians expect us to address these challenges while building for a better future. Today's announcement, coupled with our government's existing efforts and new investments in Budget 2022, to make zero-emission vehicles more affordable to buy and easier to use will bring us closer to that better future. A future with cleaner air, more good jobs and a planet that we can pass along to our kids and grandkids that is in better shape than how we found it."

The Honourable Anita Anand
Minister of National Defence

"Peel Region is committed to addressing the impacts of climate change, and our Climate Change Master Plan provides a guide to the delivery of low-carbon and resilient critical services across our great communities. Reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is a primary goal of the CCMP, and through investments and partnerships like we see today, we are making a difference. We are thankful for the commitment of our federal government to install electric vehicle chargers across Peel and to support Peel residents and businesses in reducing GHGs." 

Nando Iannicca
Peel Regional Chair

"Congratulations to the Region of Peel and the Peel Climate Change Partnership on their successful application for funding from our government to support the installation of 80 electric vehicle charging stations. We need to build accessible, reliable, and dependable charging infrastructure, so more and more Canadians adopt electric vehicles."

Shafqat Ali
Member of Parliament for Brampton Centre

"Twenty percent of our greenhouse gas emissions come from on-road transportation. With the installation of more and more electric vehicle charging stations throughout Brampton, our government is eliminating barriers to the daily use of zero-emission electric vehicles."

Ruby Sahota
Member of Parliament for Brampton North

"Transportation accounts for roughly 25 percent of Canada's GHG emissions and around 12 percent of that comes from light-duty vehicles. We must continue moving forward on a cleaner, greener future, and today's announcement of additional charging infrastructure for Peel will help get us there."

Maninder Sidhu
Member of Parliament for Brampton

Quick Facts

• Transportation accounts for 25 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions in Canada.
• Since 2019, the federal government has offered purchase incentives of up to $5,000 for eligible vehicles through Transport Canada's iZEV program, which has helped Canadians purchase or lease over 136,000 new ZEVs. 
• Since 2015, the federal government has helped build more than 1,500 charging stations across the country.
• Investments in charging infrastructure made so far will result in more than 25,000 new chargers coast to coast and where Canadians live, work and play.
• To date, over 130,000 Canadians and Canadian businesses have taken advantage of the federal incentive to purchase a zero-emission vehicle.

Related Information

• Zero-Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Program
• Electric Vehicle and Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Deployment Initiative
• Zero-Emission Vehicle Awareness Initiative
• Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Demonstration Program
• Go Green With Electric Vehicles
• Electric Charging and Alternative Fuelling Stations Locator
• Investing in Canada Plan Project Map
• Green Infrastructure programs
• Zero-emission vehicles: Incentives
• Building a green economy: Government of Canada to require 100% of car and passenger truck sales be zero-emission by 2035 in Canada
• Region of Peel 

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SOURCE Natural Resources Canada

Contacts: Natural Resources Canada, Media Relations, 343-292-6100, [email protected] ; Keean Nembhard, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Natural Resources, 613-323-7892, [email protected]