By Canadian Press

Less than one in five federally funded charging stations are operational

Aug 30, 2023 | 12:29 PM

OTTAWA — More than 43,000 electric vehicle chargers have been funded over the last seven years under the federal government’s two main EV infrastructure programs.

But data supplied by the Department of Natural Resources shows fewer than one in five are actually operational.

The data comes as Energy Minister Jonathan Wilkinson is in Quebec City today making another funding announcement on EV chargers.

He says the current electric car charging program will spend $25 million to add another 1,500 chargers in Quebec.

Together, the government’s two funding programs have invested $768 million between 2016 and 2027 to buy and install nearly 90,000 chargers.

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About one-third of the 23,000 charging stations in Canada that are operational now came out of those programs, but almost 35,000 chargers that received funding aren’t yet installed or working.

An analysis for the federal government by the research firm Dunsky Energy and Climate says Canada likely will need 52,000 chargers in place by the end of 2025 and about 200,000 by 2030 to meet national sales targets for getting more EVs on the road.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 30, 2023.

The Canadian Press