British Columbia’s provincial incentives for electric vehicles and home charging systems begin to take effect On December 1, 2011. B.C.’s new clean vehicle incentive program hopes to grow the sales of clean tech vehicles in the province with point of purchase incentives and supplementary incentive offerings to help build the required charging infrastructure for electric vehicles (EVs).
Environment Minister Terry Lake and Energy and Energy and Mines Minister Rich Coleman announced the ‘Canada Starts Here: The BC Jobs Plan.’ The government is supporting EVs and the green-tech sector with a fund valued at $17 million for that province.
Purchases of EVs can get rebates up to $5000 depending on battery size. Compressed natural gas vehicles will also qualify for a rebate. These financial incentives will help with early adopter uptake in the short-term and ensure a quicker payback period on the price premium for plug-in electric vehicles. These incentives are designed to help build the critical mass and production capacity required by OEMs to bring the costs of these vehicles down in the longer-term.
In other provinces full-functioning electrics qualify for slightly higher rebates than the hybrid options but in B.C. purchasing the fully electric Nissan LEAF qualifies for the same rebate as the Chevrolet Volt.
These investments have prompted Blair Qualey, CEO, New Car Dealers Association of B.C. to say:
“The point-of-sale rebate program is key to attracting new clean energy vehicles to the B.C. market. Manufacturers are eager to launch their new electric, plug-in hybrid electric and fuel cell cars in markets that demonstrate both high demand and with infrastructure in place – B.C. is now one of those markets.”
According to Environment Canada, the British Columbia electrical grid is the third cleanest in the country with an electricity intensity of only 20 grams of CO2 equivalent emitted for every kilowatt-hour (kWh) produced.
Homeowners in B.C. that install a dedicated EV charging station in their homes will also qualify for an additional $500 rebate. Battery-powered electric vehicles should cost as little as $300 per year in electricity bills compared to upwards of $1,500 per year to fuel a gas-powered car.
For more information on B.C.’s cleaner vehicle programs click here.
© 2011, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.
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