Ontario invests $2 million to build 340 EV chargers

The Ontario Department of Natural Resources is investing $2 million to help support the installation of 340 electric vehicle (EV) chargers across the province.

The program aims to add more chargers in public spaces, multi-unit residential buildings, streets and workplaces by October 2023. The government is working with Alectra Utilities Corporation to help determine where the chargers get allocated. However, it appears people will need to apply to have a charger installed where they think it will benefit their area.

Reducing emissions from the transportation sector is critical to achieving our climate targets. We’re investing $2M in @alectranews to help install up to 340 #EV chargers across Ontario.

Learn more: https://t.co/aEiME0uSsl #ElectricVehicles #ClimateActionGC pic.twitter.com/h8jhJ7ZjJr

— Natural Resources (@NRCan) February 28, 2022

It’s difficult to pin down how much each charger costs, but if Ontario is only investing $2 million and it wants 340 chargers, that works out to roughly $5,800 per charger. I can’t pinpoint what chargers the company will use, but judging from some of the rebate pricing structures on the government’s website, I’d expect these chargers to output between 3-50kW. These won’t be great for fast charging but would allow Ontarians to get a decent amount of range off a few hours’ charge.

MobileSyrup has reached out to Natural Resources Canada for more information and will update this story with a response.

This influx in cash into the charging network pales compared to the $4.6 million Natural Resources Canada pledged to send out to 22 organizations across the country to help raise awareness in EV adoption. This is a little ridiculous because as someone who has tested several EVs, the biggest hurdle to the burgeoning technology is the lack of chargers, not electric vehicle awareness.

Source: Natural Resources Canada