Starting May 1, electric vehicle (EV) owners in the province of British Columbia, Canada, will begin incurring new charging fees, as reported by City News.
BC Hydro has approved the use of user fees at its fast-charging stations, which will effectively up the cost of charging for any EV driver.
Still, some experts worry that the approved rates for May could actually be too low, especially considering how much surrounding businesses could stand to gain from higher charging fees.
BC Hydro started emailing Tesla North readers and EV owners this week about the following:
“On March 23, the BC Utilities Commission (BCUC) provided interim approval of charging rates for our fast-charging stations. Starting May 1, 2021, the following interim rates will apply:”
John Stonier with the Vancouver Electric Vehicle Association (VEVA) said, “We want to have hotels, restaurants, service centers along highways to be able to afford to put in these charging stations and actually get their money back through charging.” Stonier continued, “We want to make sure that the rates that are set will adequately encourage the building of that infrastructure in the future.”
Now, BC Hydro has received permission to charge between 12 and 27 cents (CAD) per minute, with the whole fast-charging process taking 10 to 20 minutes.
Last month, a press release shared hundreds of new fast-charging stations to come, including new Tesla Superchargers in British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan.
The increase in charging infrastructure signifies the region’s goal of making all vehicles fully electric by 2040, a goal set in place last year.
