EV sales rise by 214% in Canada
Electric vehicle (EV) sales have become the one bright spot in Canada’s declining new car sales this year.
Figures from the Global Automakers of Canada (GAC) reveal that auto sales suffered their fifth straight decline in July, down 3.6% on July 2017, and seeing year to date figures slip by 0.7% compared to 2017. Light vehicle sales totaled 1,211,994 units in the first seven months of this year, after a record-breaking 2017.
These figures mask a sharp 9% decline in car sales for the year to the end of July, although a 3.3% rise in light truck sales helped to compensate for the shortfall. The Honda Civic is the best selling car in Canada, while Ford’s F-Series leads the truck sales.
David Adams, president of the GAC, said “We’ve had an extended period of sales growth in Canada for eight years now, so at some point the expectation of continued sales growth is unrealistic.”
EV sales climb rapidly
Against this backdrop, EV sales have soared 214% year on year in the second quarter of 2018, according to FleetCarma, a clean-tech information and technology company. It reports that 14,626 EVs were sold in Canada during Q2, compared to 11,060 for the whole of 2016.
The figures were boosted by the launch of the Tesla Model 3 in Canada, although 37 different EVs contributed to the sales total.
Why are sales rising?
FleetCarma attributed the rising sales of zero emission cars to ‘increased car buyer comfort and interest in the technology’, the Tesla Model 3 going on sale for the first time in Canada, and buyers acting before the province of Ontario withdrew its generous EV incentive of $5,000 to $14,000 CAD.
Total EV sales have reached 70,000 vehicles in Canada, a 50:50 split between battery-electric and plug-in hybrid electric. Q2 saw 14,626 new plug-in vehicles registered in Canada, compared to just 4,659 in the same quarter of 2017, a 214% rise.
The Tesla Model 3 dominated battery EV sales during the quarter, accounting for almost one-fifth of EV registrations as 2,785 hit the road, followed by the Nissan Leaf (1,808) and Chevrolet Bolt (808).
The Chevrolet Volt led the sales charge by PHEVs with 1,653 sales, followed by the Toyota Prius PRIME (1,152) and the Mitsubishi Outlander (1,504).
Combined sales of EVs accounted for 7.8% of Canada’s passenger car sales in Q2, up from 2.2% last year.
Volkswagen's new fast-charging network
Capitalising on this surge in demand for EVs, Volkswagen Group Canada announced plans in July to build an ultra-fast electric vehicle direct current (DC) charging network across the country. The 32 charging stations near major motorways and in key urban areas in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Quebec are expected to go live in the second quarter of 2019.
The charge points will be capable of delivering 150kW to 350kW for anticipated longer range, larger battery vehicles coming to the market, but will also deliver 50kW charging power for today’s EVs.
Daniel Weissland, president and chief executive officer, Volkswagen Group Canada, said, “The Canadian electric vehicle market is growing, creating a great need for charging that is fast, convenient and available in key locations.”
