The Electric Vehicle Availability Standard (EVAS), a rule requiring automakers to sell a minimum and increasing percentage of zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) and requiring the sector to attain 100% ZEVs by 2035, will be repealed, the Canadian government stated.
Launched in 2023, the rule includes intermediate mandatory targets, such as mandating ZEVs to account for 20% of new vehicle sales by 2026 and 60% by 2030, with the goal of gradually increasing availability for consumers.
As consumer demand for EVs has been lower than anticipated and automakers have cautioned about the cost of meeting the ambitious mandates, including the European Commission's announcement in December that it would remove its requirement for a 100% reduction in CO2 emissions from new cars and vans starting from 2035, Canada's move is part of similar pullbacks in other jurisdictions.
The government stated that it will be "setting the course for the intention of more than doubling the stringency of Canada's greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions standards by 2035" in lieu of the EVAS mandate, which it predicted will result in a 75% EV adoption rate.
The government announced the launch of a new EV affordability program, citing affordability as a major obstacle to EV adoption. The program offers purchase incentives of up to $5,000 for fuel-cell and battery electric vehicles and $2,500 for plug-in hybrids, with the amounts decreasing yearly until 2030 to $2,000 and $1,000, respectively.
The government also said that it intends to create a nationwide strategy for charging infrastructure, with an emphasis on luring private equity investment, lowering obstacles to the construction of charging infrastructure, assisting in the preparation of buildings for electric vehicles, and promoting skill development.
