Automotive News Canada - February 2024 - 4

4
* FEBRUARY 2024
More chargers, but also more EVs
The federal
government has
committed $1.2
billion for 84,500
charging stations
before 2030, but tens
of thousands more
will be needed
By DAVID KENNEDY
T ORONTO BUREAU CHIEF
ELECTRIC-VEHICLE DRIVERS
across Canada had access to
10,666 public charging stations
with 26,008 individual chargers
at the close of 2023, as public and
private infrastructure investments
accelerated the pace of
installations.
Despite the numbers recorded
by Natural Resources Canada,
analysis shows that current
totals are a fraction of the infrastructure
required to support an
all-electric fleet.
A federally commissioned
report from the consultancy
Dunsky Energy + Climate
Advisors released in 2022 found
that Canada will need 200,000
public charger stations by 2030
and 442,000 to 469,000 by 2035.
Provincially in 2023, Quebec
led the way for public charging
stations with 3,972. Ontario and
British Columbia ranked second
and third, respectively. Canada's
most populous province had
3,190 charging stations at the
STATION
BREAKDOWN
The number of charging
stations by province at the end
of 2023. Most charging stations
contain multiple chargers,
or ports.
1. Quebec
2. Ontario
3. British Columbia
4. Alberta
5. New Brunswick
6. Nova Scotia
7. Manitoba
8. Saskatchewan
10. Newfoundland
and Labrador
11. Yukon
3,972
3,190
1,911
573
201
201
190
152
9. Prince Edward Island 138
113
23
12. Northwest Territories 2
Canada
10,666
Source: Natural Resources Canada
end of 2023, while B.C. had 1,911.
Each station includes at least
one individual charger, or port.
Most locations have multiple
chargers, with larger stations
equipped to charge dozens of
vehicles simultaneously.
According to data compiled by
THE BIG PLAYERS
* ChargePoint: The U.S.
EV charging infrastructure
company has 3,200 stations
in Canada. Its network
had 5,573 Level 2
ports and 228 fast chargers
at the end of 2023.
At the end of the 2023, Canadians had access to more than
26,000 individual chargers. Forecasts say 200,000 will be
needed by 2030. PHOTO: GREG LAYSON
NRCan, the two largest stations
- one at a transit station in
the Montreal area, and a Tesla
Destination Charger in downtown
Toronto - each have 60
240-volt Level 2 ports.
The federal department listed
21,242 public charging ports
operating at Level 2 speeds
across the more than 10,000 locations
at the end of 2023, in addition
to 4,766 Level 3 DC fastcharging
ports.
While NRCan regularly collects
and verifies locations in its
database of charging stations,
the tallies are subject to ongoing
additions, revisions and possible
oversights because of the rapid
pace of change.
MORE PLACES TO PLUG IN
The continued expansion of
Canada's public EV charging network
in 2023 came as more drivers
purchase electric or plugin
hybrid vehicles. In the third
quarter of 2023, the latest period
for which data is available from
Statistics Canada, zero-emission
vehicles accounted for 12.1 per
cent of new vehicles registered
across the country.
The federal government has
committed $1.2 billion to help
build 84,500 of the 200,000 needed
stations before 2030. Funding for
more than half has already been
allocated, while 10,000 chargers
have already been installed.
Ottawa expects private sector
investors to fill the gap, spurred
by regulations finalized in
December that will require ZEVs
to account for 20 per cent of automaker
sales by 2026, 60 per cent
by 2030 and 100 per cent by 2035.
- ANC
Keep your leads from
going cold with
DEFA WarmUp.
Fledgling miner regroups
as lithium prices dive 80%
By DAVID KENNEDY
T ORONTO BUREAU CHIEF
THE OWNER OF NORTH
America's only hard rock lithium
mine has replaced its Quebec
CEO and is reining in costs as
global prices for the key
electric vehicle battery
material continue to
slump. As a result, 14 staff
were laid off.
Discover
Scan QR Code
to learn more
Sayona Mining Ltd.,
which owns a majority
stake in the North
American Lithium mine
in northwest Quebec,
announced the layoffs
Jan. 25 and said it had
initiated an operational
review to reduce expenses
given the " challenging
market environment. "
As part of the review,
the Australia miner said
Guy Belleau, CEO of the company's
Quebec unit, " has departed "
his role, effective immediately.
Belleau joined the company in
2022 and took on the position of
Quebec CEO in January 2023.
The open-pit site in La Corne,
Que., which is one of just a handful
of North American mines producing
lithium, started up in 2023.
It began producing spodumene
concentrate in March 2023, shipping
the lithium-rich material to
customers such as Tesla Inc. and
battery maker LG Chem.
But the price of spodumene
concentrate, as well as battery-grade
lithium hydroxide
and lithium carbonate, have
plunged by 80 per cent or more
since January 2023, according to
industry analysis company
Benchmark Mineral
Intelligence.
Sylvain
Collard,
COO for
Quebec will
take over
Quebec
operations.
PHOTO:
LINKEDIN
James Brown, interim
CEO of Sayona, said
the company is " well positioned
to remain a strategic
source of lithium for
the North American battery
and EV market, " but
the current environment is
" challenging. "
Brown said the layoffs
are " regrettable " but will
allow the company to maintain
and enhance production
while also delivering
for shareholders.
Sayona's COO for Quebec,
Sylvain Collard, will take over the
company's Quebec operations,
reporting to Brown in Australia.
Sayona said the operational
review at the Quebec mine will
be done in collaboration with its
joint-venture partner, Piedmont
Lithium Inc., which has a 25 per
cent stake in the project. The
companies expect to complete
the review process by the end of
March. - ANC
* Flo: The charger manufacturer
and network operator
had 2,440 charging
stations in Canada at the
end of December. The
Quebec company's network
consisted of 5,975
Level 2 ports and 571
Level 3 fast chargers.
* Circuit électrique (The
Electric Circuit): The
Hydro Quebec affiliate had
2,370 active EV charging
stations, with 4,264 Level
2 ports and 889 fast chargers
to start 2024.
* Tesla Inc.: The
Supercharger network of
the U.S. EV maker consisted
of 2,036 fast chargers
at 208 locations
across Canada at the end
of 2023. Its Destination
Charging network included
2,086 Level 2 ports
across 558 stations.
Source: Natural Resources Canada
Automotive News Canada - February 2024

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