Electric vehicle sales are exploding

Sales of zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) exploded in Quebec in the third quarter of 2023. More than one in five newly registered cars is now a ZEV, which places Quebec in the lead in the country, just behind British Columbia. Explanations.

Deliveries are arriving

New registrations of zero-emission vehicles (ZEV) in Quebec reached 22.8% in the third quarter of 2023, show the most recent data from the firm S&P Global. This is an increase of almost 10 percentage points compared to the third quarter of 2022; the rate was then 13.3%. “For two years, many people have ordered vehicles for which there was a one or two year wait and there, [les concessionnaires] are starting to deliver, so sales are increasing,” explains Daniel Breton, president and CEO of Electric Mobility Canada, an industry association promoting electric transportation.

More and more competitive prices

The increase in sales can also be explained by the fact that the price gap between ZEVs and vehicles with internal combustion engines has narrowed significantly, estimates Daniel Breton. “The price of electric vehicles has not fallen that much, [mais] the price of gasoline vehicles has exploded, making ZEVs very competitive for the cost of purchase,” he says. About fifty ZEV models sell at a price lower than the average selling price of a new vehicle in Canada, which was $67,800 in September, underlines Mr. Breton – a comparison not taking into account the provincial rebate.

The effectiveness of regulation

Quebec thus joins British Columbia (at 26.4%) in the leading group of Canadian provinces where the largest proportion of electric vehicles are sold, far ahead of the others. It is no coincidence that these are the two provinces having adopted regulations to force manufacturers to sell a minimum of ZEVs, says Anne-Catherine Pilon, sustainable mobility analyst at Équiterre. “It shows that the ZEV regulations work,” she said. It starts a movement. » This regulation is all the more justified since taxpayers subsidize the battery industry, she said. “It’s the pendulum swinging back. »

New federal regulations

Ottawa will also announce this Tuesday federal regulations to impose on automobile manufacturers a minimum threshold for ZEV sales in the country. “This regulation does not target Quebec or British Columbia, it targets the rest of Canada, where there are no regulations,” explains Daniel Breton. In Quebec, we are far ahead. » This regulation could, however, help Quebec to increase the share of ZEVs in new vehicle sales by increasing the availability of these vehicles in the country. “The popular models are still a year, two years of waiting,” observes Daniel Breton.

Global trend

Quebec is following the global trend of increasing sales of ZEVs, but its status as a wealthy nation should lead it to do better, believes Patrick Bonin, head of Greenpeace Canada’s Climate-Energy campaign. “Norway is above 80%, Iceland above 40%, even China should pass 40% at the end of 2023,” he observes. “We would have sold even more vehicles if there had been more available,” he said, calling for more teeth to be given to Quebec regulations, but also for more funding for public transport to reduce the size of the fleet. automobile.