Ontario Raises Some EV Incentives, Lowers Others

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Originally published on EV Obsession.

The Canadian province of Ontario has gone ahead and increased the incentives available through the Electric Vehicle Incentive Program to up to CAD$14,000 per unit — up from the previous incentive range of CAD$5000-CAD$8,500 — according to a new press release.

The government there also decided to limit the incentives’ applicability to electric vehicles (EVs) that sell for under CAD$75,000 — with the intent clearly being to encourage the purchase of cheaper models, and also to no longer subsidize the purchase of luxury cars by rich people. EVs that sell for between CAD$75,000 and CAD$150,000 will reportedly still be eligible for incentives of up to CAD$3,000.

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The move is apparently part of the province’s Climate Change Strategy, and was personally announced by Premier Kathleen Wynne at WaterPark Place in Toronto a few days ago. The province is currently aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80% (as compared to 1990 levels) by the year 2050.

Here are the specifics, courtesy of the press release (a reminder, this is all in Canadian dollars):

  • Increase the current incentive range for EVs from $5,000 – $8,500 to $6,000 – $10,000
  • Provide an opportunity to receive an additional $3,000 incentive for vehicles with larger battery capacities
  • Provide an additional $1,000 incentive for vehicles with five or more seats
  • Continue to provide incentives linked to battery capacity of more than 5 kilowatt-hours
  • Cap incentives for vehicles priced between $75,000 and $150,000 at $3,000
  • Provide up to $1,000 for the purchase and installation of chargers for home and business use.

These changes are retroactive back to the first of the year (January, 1, 2016), so anyone that has bought an EV there since then can make a claim.

Though some commentators bang on repeatedly about us covering Tesla news too much… I’m going to go ahead and make the observation here that these changes will substantially lower the costs of purchasing a Model 3

To date, there are currently around 5800 EVs in Ontario, with 4800 of these pertaining to EVs purchased using this incentive program.

(Tip of the hat here to “phigment” on the Tesla Motors Club forum.)

Reprinted with permission.


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James Ayre

James Ayre's background is predominantly in geopolitics and history, but he has an obsessive interest in pretty much everything. After an early life spent in the Imperial Free City of Dortmund, James followed the river Ruhr to Cofbuokheim, where he attended the University of Astnide. And where he also briefly considered entering the coal mining business. He currently writes for a living, on a broad variety of subjects, ranging from science, to politics, to military history, to renewable energy.

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