OTTAWA — With coffers running dry on federal government incentives to purchase zero emission vehicles, Canada’s auto industry says it’s time to do away with plans to phase out internal combustion engines by 2035.
Monday’s closure of the Incentives for Zero-Emission Vehicles (iZEV) program comes just 12 months before the start of a multi-year EV sales mandate where 20% of all new Canadian car sales must be zero-emission, reaching 100% by 2035.
Speaking at a Tuesday press conference on Parliament Hill, Brian Kingston, Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association (CVMA) president, said the industry was taken aback to learn about the sudden end of the incentives.
“Given the ambitious mandated targets established just one year ago, industry was shocked to learn the federal zero-emission vehicle purchase incentive program has abruptly ended, creating chaos for consumers,” he said.
“Equally concerning is new data revealing that the pace of the charging infrastructure roll-out is slowing — both are critical preconditions to mass EV adoption.”
On Monday, Transport Canada announced they’d “paused” the iZEV program, rebating up to $5,000 on new electric vehicles.
Quebec is set to stop their own program next month.
iZEV was initially set to wind down at the end of March, or until the program ran out of funds.
“Over 546,000 vehicles have been incented through this program since it began, helping Canada reach a new ZEV market share of 11.7% in 2023, a significant increase from 3.1% in 2019,” reads a Transport Canada press release on the pause.
“New ZEV market share reached 14.2% in the first three quarters of 2024, including a new record high of 16.5% in the third quarter of 2024.”
A similar program for business vehicles will remain in place until 2026.
“It should be obvious to everyone now that provincial and federally mandated zero emission sales targets are no longer ambitious, but a complete fantasy,” Kingston said.
“There is no pathway to 100% zero-emission vehicle sales in the next 10 years with the supports being provided to Canadians. Dictating what vehicles Canadians can and cannot buy , without providing them with the supports necessary to switch to electric is a made-in-Canada policy failure.”
Kingston accused the Trudeau Liberals of shaping policy based on the whims of environmentalists, rather than actual stakeholders.
“Instead of incorporating industry and expert input, the federal government instead relied on ill-conceived analysis from environmental groups posing as automotive experts,” Kingston said.
Tim Reuss, president and CEO of the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association, said the government’s backtrack is especially frustrating for dealers.
“(Environment) Minister (Steven) Guilbeault, this is your program, if you cannot secure adequate funding for it, get rid of it,” he said.
The Toronto Sun reached out to Transport Canada for comment.
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