Minister Wilkinson releases report on public charging infrastructure for electric vehicles

OTTAWA — Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) commissioned a study in 2021 to update the federal government’s understanding of Canada’s overall charging infrastructure needs and how these are likely to evolve as the national EV fleet continues to grow. On Aug. 29, Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Natural Resources, released that report, entitled Canada’s public charging needs – Updated projections, conducted by Dunsky Energy + Climate Advisors. This Report is an important piece of the puzzle to assess the country’s charging landscape, guide decision-making and inform investment needs.

The Report provides an updated analysis of the 2018 Optimal charging ratio for Canada Report, also completed by Dunsky, to reflect an accelerated timeline for achieving 100-percent zero-emissions vehicles (ZEV) market share of new sales.

The updated analysis concluded that, by 2030, Canada will need to have around 200,000 publicly accessible chargers, with a ratio of one charger for every 24 electric vehicles and with the chargers varying in charge-time. While the model assumed a 15 percent market share of new vehicle sales by 2025, the 60 percent by 2030 and 100 percent by 2035 targets are in line with federal mandate.

The analysis also outlined five key findings, all of which validate and support the federal government’s ongoing efforts to deploy charging infrastructure across the country:

• There is “a need for a significant acceleration in charging infrastructure deployment over the next five to ten years”;
• Adequate deployment of charging infrastructure will require “$20 billion of total investment over the next three decades” (the study “does not assess what portion of this infrastructure would require support from the federal government” and does not speak to the roles that provincial and municipal governments will need to play);
• The “primary driver for the number of charging ports is capacity requirements within community clusters”;
• Improving home charging access will help Canada achieve its EV adoption and infrastructure targets; and
• For households that do not have access to charging at home, “public charging infrastructure can potentially serve as a substitute”.

“The independent findings in this report are consistent with Canada’s targets for charging infrastructure — we are on the right track. As we continue to make EVs more accessible and affordable for Canadians, the business case for private investment in publicly available charging infrastructure is becoming more apparent, and I look forward to seeing even more industry players installing chargers across the country. I would like to thank Dunsky Energy + Climate Advisors for this report.” said Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Natural Resources.