Ask the federal government to close the EV-readiness gap

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July 28, 2023

Dear Prime Minister Trudeau,

Re: 2024 Budget Solution for Electric Vehicle Readiness in Multi-Family Buildings

In your 2024 budget, you have an opportunity to support Canadians and ensure the success of your government’s mandate that 100% of new passenger car and light truck sales be zero emitting by 2035. 

We are organizations and citizens working to increase access to electric vehicles (EVs) across Canada. As you know, advancing EV adoption was part of your winning re-election platform and is mission-critical to achieving Canada’s 2030 and 2050 climate targets. To ensure the EV wave reaches across the population, the government must not leave behind residents of apartments and condominiums. 

We urge the Government of Canada to invest at least $250 million per year for the next four years to make EV-readiness a reality for Canadians living in multi-family buildings. 

What is “EV-readiness?”  

EV-ready buildings include a high proportion of parking stalls with energized outlets that support the easy installation of future Level 2 chargers. 

Access to EV charging is not equal 

One third of Canadians live in apartments and condos, with an even higher proportion in urban centres. Achieving Canada’s EV adoption targets depends on many of them making a timely transition from gasoline or diesel vehicles. And incoming federal sales regulations will exponentially increase their demand over the next decade.  

Charging at home is the most affordable, convenient choice for most EV owners. However, installing chargers in apartments and condos is more complex and expensive than outfitting a single-family home. This helps explain why EV adoption rates by apartment and condo dwellers are significantly lower than the general population. 

To date, installation of EV charging by landlords and condo boards has usually been limited and piecemeal since they lack the upfront capital required to meet future charging needs. But with those needs on the near horizon, today’s incremental approach delays the total number of installations, drives up costs, increases the risk of stranded assets, and dissuades residents from switching to EVs. 

A critical funding gap for landlords and condo boards 

In recent years the Zero Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Program (ZEVIP) has played a critical role in accelerating the adoption of EV charging among Canadians. However, landlords and condo boards cannot use ZEVIP funding for the electricity upgrades and associated construction costs to support the future installation of Level 2 chargers throughout their buildings.  

A funding stream designed for comprehensive EV-readiness in multi-family buildings will give all residents charging access much more cost-effectively than an incremental approach.  

Building on a successful funding model  

The model for success already exists. We recommend that Natural Resources Canada adopt British Columbia’s leading approach to help landlords and condo owners plan for higher levels of EV-readiness nationwide. The popular CleanBC Go Electric EV Charger Ready Rebate Program, launched in December 2020, supports building owners by funding most of the EV-ready planning costs and up to half of the EV-ready infrastructure and installation costs.  

A best practice federal program would go beyond supporting EV-ready planning and support comprehensive electrical assessments for full building electrification readiness, including for applications such as space and water heating, cooking, solar PV, and storage. At minimum, an EV-ready program should complement funding for planning building electrification. 

Invest in equitable EV-readiness across Canada 

Canada needs a dedicated new funding stream of $250 million annually over four years to catalyze investment in this critical market, ensure equitable access to EVs, and achieve the government’s 2035 mandate.   

Investing in EV-ready apartments and condos will: 

• Enable more tenants and condo dwellers to make their next car an EV; 
• Support more cost-effective investments for building owners, residents, government and, by extension, taxpayers; 
• Support the creation of new jobs, skill sets, and economic opportunities for people and businesses;  
• Drive market development for EV-ready apartment and condo retrofits to gradually reduce the need for government investment in this sector over time.   

We’ll need to support other underserved populations, like rural communities and those with limited grid connections, yet we are confident that addressing the massive multi-family building segment will dramatically accelerate the rollout of EV charging in Canada. 

Prime Minister Trudeau, we urge you to include funding for equitable EV-readiness in Budget 2024. We have no time to lose. We are ready to advise on this program and would request the opportunity to meet with you and your team to advance this idea.  

Yours sincerely, 

Julia Langer
CEO, The Atmospheric Fund