It wasn’t a big-ticket item, but the $56.1 million earmarked in last week’s federal budget to advance standard-setting for charging and refuelling stations in Canada and the U.S. could have a significant impact in reducing barriers to EV adoption 

New funding in last week’s 2021 federal budget to develop a policy that will enable consumers to be accurately and transparently priced for electrical vehicle charging is “a welcomed effort,” according to Suzanne Goldberg, director of public policy in Canada with charging network provider ChargePoint.

Now she and others in the sector are waiting to see how the $56.1-million initiative rolls out, and are hopeful of contributing to a discussion that they say could assuage one of the remaining significant barriers to EV adoption.

Retail codes and standards

As announced in the Budget 2021, the federal government plans to invest $56.1 million over five years “to develop and implement” a coordinated set of codes and standards for retail zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) charging and refuelling stations. In addition to the initial cash infusion, Measurement Canada — the entity in charge of the charging standards — will receive $13 million per year, ongoing.

Daniel Breton, president and CEO of Electric Mobility Canada, says the funding is a step in the right direction, but that he’s looking forward to more specific details being released. 

“To me, [this announcement] clearly states that the federal government understands that they need to update their policies on charging and fuelling zero-emission vehicles,” Breton said in an interview with Electric Autonomy Canada, adding that a set North American charging standard would be “easier for everyone.”

Volumetric charging a perennial conversation

One of the most raked-over water cooler topics for electric vehicle drivers is charging speeds. As technology improves and more vehicles with faster charging capabilities hit the road an inequality emerges: faster-charging vehicles (usually the newer models) often pay less for public charging.

Enter the issue of volumetric charging.

“What the government is trying to solve is developing a policy that will enable consumers to be accurately and transparently priced for charging services. This budget is basically giving Measurement Canada direction and funding to develop standards and allow this energy-based pricing option, to allow for individuals who own charging services and set those fees,” explains ChargePoint’s Goldberg, in an interview with Electric Autonomy Canada. “That’s one policy area that we have been focused on. It’s a really important policy lever that will help remove barriers and will help accelerate investment in charging infrastructure and remove barriers on the consumer side.”

The issue is this: currently Canadian EV drivers who are plugging in are charged for the time they are connected to the charger rather than by the amount of energy they are drawing. So, if two vehicles are plugged into the same charging unit and both are trying to get an 80 per cent charge from empty, the vehicle that is able to draw energy faster will pay less even though both vehicles are taking the same amount of energy.

Active lobbying

Documents from the Federal Lobbyist Registry show Tesla Motors Canada has been lobbying Measurement Canada on establishing “charging station metrology and fair billing practices with the intention of enabling EV charging station billing on a volumetric basis” since July 2020. While Tesla did not singlehandedly influence government position on the topic, obviously there has been significant effort on many stakeholder’s part to get Canada’s top officials engaged on the topic, which has resulted in the Budget 2021 announcement.

“One reason this was in the budget was that this is something EV drivers across Canada have been asking for, for years — businesses, municipalities, charging station providers — it’s an equity and transparency piece on the side of the driver, but also on the side of the station owner. They want to be able to accurately track their costs and it’s an important component from an investment decision to know that you have that ability,” explains Goldberg. “What’s holding us back right now is the ability to charge per kilowatt hour and the ability to do so is really being hindered by a lack of standard development by Measurement Canada. This is a critical policy lever”

Brian Kingston, president and CEO of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association, welcomes the idea that a charging standard could be on the horizon. 

A significant barrier

“The funding announced for coordinated EV charging infrastructure codes and standards is encouraging,” Kingston said in an interview with Electric Autonomy Canada, “as we know that one of the most significant barriers to more zero-emission vehicle adoption in Canada are concerns that consumers have around charging and charging infrastructure.”

Kingston said the Budget 2021 announcement for funding to develop and implement these standards has the potential to instil confidence for consumers looking to do longer road trips with EVs, but the federal government still needs more long-term investments in charging and consumer incentive programs to make EVs more affordable. 

“The key challenge we face right now is that EV are expensive as the technology is still in the development phase,” Kingston said. “So as we see battery prices come down, we will eventually reach price parity with gas-powered vehicles. But we’re still a number of years off from that.”

Budget 2021’s announcement for funding to Measurement Canada to develop and implements these standards includes the caveat of potential “coordination with international partners.” Kingston said coordinating charging standards with the United States is particularly important. 

“The Canadian auto industry is totally integrated with North America, and so the success of the industry and our ability to win investments into Canada depends on alignment primarily with the United States, both to encourage more manufacturing in Canada, and to encourage vehicle sales in Canada.”