Statistics Canada recently released data on zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) for the first half of 2020, which consists of battery electric or plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs).
According to StatCan, “zero-emission vehicles have continued to grow in popularity”, with 3.5% of total new vehicles registered in Canada for the first half of 2020 were ZEVs. This is a relatively small number but is trending higher year-over-year.
Q1 and Q2 of 2020 saw 21,188 new ZEVs registered in Canada, with 67.4% of these being battery electric vehicles, or 14,280.
Data shows 94.1% of these new ZEV registrations took place in British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec.
For data from B.C., 8.4% of new vehicles registered in the province for the first half of 2020 were ZEVs, or 6,515 vehicles. StatCan says 78.5% of these were battery electric vehicles, or 5,114 (via Victoria EV Club).
The Victoria census metropolitan (CMA) had the highest percentage of ZEVs in Canada, at 13.4% of new vehicles registered. In Vancouver, this percentage was at 11% for new vehicle registrations as ZEVs.
In Ontario, 1.4% of new vehicles registered in the first half of 2020 were ZEVs, or 3,054. Toronto saw 1.8% of new vehicles registered as ZEVs, while this number was just 1.7% in Ottawa.
In Quebec, the province saw 10,378 new ZEVs registered for the first half of 2020, representing 6.8% of new vehicle registrations. Montreal had 8% of new vehicles registered as ZEVs, while Quebec City saw 5.2%. Overall, 61.2% of ZEVs registered in Quebec were battery electric vehicles.
If you’re following any regional Tesla groups on Facebook, it’s clear the battery electric vehicle of choice is Tesla right now.
The Canadian government has an iZEV program which offers up to $5,000 towards the purchase of eligible electric vehicles. The government hopes to reach net-zero emissions by 2050 and recently floated the idea of banning new gasoline car sales in North American, with a partnership with the U.S. government.
