The federal government is promising to spend close to $880 million over the next four years to build about 65,000 new charging stations for electric or fuel cell-powered passenger vehicles.
But an industry group representing some of Canada’s biggest automakers says Canada needs to be building millions of stations.
Brian Kingston, president of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers Association, said a national electric-charging network needs years of careful planning to ensure the charging stations are available when and where people need them.
“We haven’t done the planning and we haven’t put the investment into a charging network,” he said.
Why a charging station network is needed
Canada is mandating EV sales — 50 per cent of new cars sold in 2030 must be emissions-free, growing to 100 per cent in 2035 — but nobody is taking the lead to make sure people know what that means in terms of how much electricity, or how many charging stations, will be needed, said Kingston.
The association represents three of Canada’s biggest automakers — Ford, GM and the new multinational Stellantis, formed earlier this year in a merger that now represents brands such as Dodge, Jeep and Chrysler.
Kingston said automakers are committed to the transition to electric — the three companies the association represents are investing $100 billion US in electrification over the next few years, with plans to bring 120 new EV models to the market.
But he said new models and more supply would solve only one piece of the electric transition, because if the charging networks don’t keep pace, people aren’t going to make the switch.
Or, even worse, they’re going to switch back, he said.
The president of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers Association says while Canada is planning EV sales mandates, the country has not figured out how much electricity and how many charging stations will be needed. (Doug Ives/The Canadian Press)
What happens if enough chargers aren’t built
A study published in the journal Nature Energy last spring said as many as one in five zero-emission vehicle owners went back to gas because of inconvenient charging access.
“So I just use that as a caution to government that, you know, we better start planning this like tomorrow,” he said.
He argues Canada hasn’t done the planning and instead has a fractured response, with very low ambitions, compared to the rest of the world.
Canada currently has about 15,000 public or semi-private chargers available, and at least another 2,000 are in various stages of construction with public funding. Natural Resources Canada has another $180 million in the existing budget to build 17,000 or so more in the next three years.
The Liberals promised to spend another $700 million by 2026 to build an additional 50,000 new ones.
Canada currently has 15,000 public or semi-private charging stations. (Ben Nelms/CBC)
How Canada compares with other countries
Kingston said to keep pace with Europe’s goal of having one public charger for every 10 EVs, Canada will need almost four million chargers by 2050. To get to California’s goal of one for every seven vehicles, that’s closer to six million needed in Canada.
An analysis done for Natural Resources Canada recently suggested Canada will need, on average, one charger for every 20 EVs by 2025, and after more EVs roll on to streets, the ratio would fall to about one in every 49 vehicles by 2050.
“It’s obvious that we don’t have an ambitious enough plan to build charging infrastructure,” Kingston said, adding overbuilding is needed at first to encourage EV adoption.
The Natural Resources analysis also notes that longer term, it’s more likely that public chargers will need to be high-speed, capable of recharging a car in less than an hour.
The International Energy Agency said this year Canada has about 0.06 publicly available chargers for every EV on the road, ranking about 20th in the world, neck and neck with the United States as a whole.
In November, an Ernst and Young analysis of the EV readiness of the world’s 10 biggest auto markets said Canada was in the bottom three, largely because of low demand and a lacklustre charging system. China is on top, followed by Sweden and Germany.
Wilf Steimle, president of the Electric Vehicle Society, said charging is one of the biggest concerns raised by people thinking about making the switch.
“What owners care about is: By the time I’ve gone to the bathroom, and grab another cup of coffee, is my car ready to go. Because I don’t want to stand there waiting for it for half an hour or so,” he said.
TORONTO – Canada Goose Holdings Inc. says it has signed a deal that will result in the creation of its first eyewear collection.
The deal announced on Thursday by the Toronto-based luxury apparel company comes in the form of an exclusive, long-term global licensing agreement with Marchon Eyewear Inc.
The terms and value of the agreement were not disclosed, but Marchon produces eyewear for brands including Lacoste, Nike, Calvin Klein, Ferragamo, Longchamp and Zeiss.
Marchon plans to roll out both sunglasses and optical wear under the Canada Goose name next spring, starting in North America.
Canada Goose says the eyewear will be sold through optical retailers, department stores, Canada Goose shops and its website.
Canada Goose CEO Dani Reiss told The Canadian Press in August that he envisioned his company eventually expanding into eyewear and luggage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Almost seven years since news broke of an alleged conspiracy to fix the price of packaged bread across Canada, the saga isn’t over: the Competition Bureau continues to investigate the companies that may have been involved, and two class-action lawsuits continue to work their way through the courts.
Here’s a timeline of key events in the bread price-fixing case.
Oct. 31, 2017: The Competition Bureau says it’s investigating allegations of bread price-fixing and that it was granted search warrants in the case. Several grocers confirm they are co-operating in the probe.
Dec. 19, 2017: Loblaw and George Weston say they participated in an “industry-wide price-fixing arrangement” to raise the price of packaged bread. The companies say they have been co-operating in the Competition Bureau’s investigation since March 2015, when they self-reported to the bureau upon discovering anti-competitive behaviour, and are receiving immunity from prosecution. They announce they are offering $25 gift cards to customers amid the ongoing investigation into alleged bread price-fixing.
Jan. 31, 2018: In court documents, the Competition Bureau says at least $1.50 was added to the price of a loaf of bread between about 2001 and 2016.
Dec. 20, 2019: A class-action lawsuit in a Quebec court against multiple grocers and food companies is certified against a number of companies allegedly involved in bread price-fixing, including Loblaw, George Weston, Metro, Sobeys, Walmart Canada, Canada Bread and Giant Tiger (which have all denied involvement, except for Loblaw and George Weston, which later settled with the plaintiffs).
Dec. 31, 2021: A class-action lawsuit in an Ontario court covering all Canadian residents except those in Quebec who bought packaged bread from a company named in the suit is certified against roughly the same group of companies.
June 21, 2023: Bakery giant Canada Bread Co. is fined $50 million after pleading guilty to four counts of price-fixing under the Competition Act as part of the Competition Bureau’s ongoing investigation.
Oct. 25 2023: Canada Bread files a statement of defence in the Ontario class action denying participating in the alleged conspiracy and saying any anti-competitive behaviour it participated in was at the direction and to the benefit of its then-majority owner Maple Leaf Foods, which is not a defendant in the case (neither is its current owner Grupo Bimbo). Maple Leaf calls Canada Bread’s accusations “baseless.”
Dec. 20, 2023: Metro files new documents in the Ontario class action accusing Loblaw and its parent company George Weston of conspiring to implicate it in the alleged scheme, denying involvement. Sobeys has made a similar claim. The two companies deny the allegations.
July 25, 2024: Loblaw and George Weston say they agreed to pay a combined $500 million to settle both the Ontario and Quebec class-action lawsuits. Loblaw’s share of the settlement includes a $96-million credit for the gift cards it gave out years earlier.
Sept. 12, 2024: Canada Bread files new documents in Ontario court as part of the class action, claiming Maple Leaf used it as a “shield” to avoid liability in the alleged scheme. Maple Leaf was a majority shareholder of Canada Bread until 2014, and the company claims it’s liable for any price-fixing activity. Maple Leaf refutes the claims.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX:L, TSX:MFI, TSX:MRU, TSX:EMP.A, TSX:WN)
TORONTO – TD Bank Group, which is mired in a money laundering scandal in the U.S., says chief executive Bharat Masrani will retire next year.
Masrani, who will retire officially on April 10, 2025, says the bank’s, “anti-money laundering challenges,” took place on his watch and he takes full responsibility.
The bank named Raymond Chun, TD’s group head, Canadian personal banking, as his successor.
As part of a transition plan, Chun will become chief operating officer on Nov. 1 before taking over the top job when Masrani steps down at the bank’s annual meeting next year.
TD also announced that Riaz Ahmed, group head, wholesale banking and president and CEO of TD Securities, will retire at the end of January 2025.
TD has taken billions in charges related to ongoing U.S. investigations into the failure of its anti-money laundering program.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
