by Evan Matthews | [email protected]
While a local business is in talks with tech titan Tesla to bring an electric vehicle (EV) supercharger to its parking lot, the municipality and Parks Canada are working to get the same thing in other locations.
Oliver Andrew, son of George, owner of the Astoria Hotel, confirmed to the Fitzhugh that the business has submitted a proposal to Tesla for a super charging station in its parking lot across the street.
“This is an environmental and business decision. I’m really interested in Tesla and what the company is doing. There are a lot of cool things (people) can do,” says Andrew. “From a business standpoint, people are asking if there are charging stations around. If we had one it would bring people in, and it’d be great.”
With a Tesla dealership in Calgary, Andrew suggested future potential exists for some kind of Calgary, Highway 93 to Jasper eco-tourism connection.
“It’s a growing trend,” says Andrew.
Tesla charging stations are exclusive to Tesla vehicles, as the connector is the wrong shape for other EVs, and the rate at which Tesla chargers charge other vehicles is too great.
Not just for private business
The Municipality of Jasper and Parks Canada’s environmental stewardship coordinator Janet Cooper sees the attraction to EVs, too. Statistics show EV use is already on the rise in Canada, and Cooper says it is just beginning.
Cooper is aiming to have a supercharger for other vehicles installed in Jasper. It would make the town the only place in northwestern Canada outside of Calgary and Edmonton to have a super charging station.
There are charging stations at the Sawridge Inn and at Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge.
“But we want some for the town, too, public ones,” says Cooper.
Superchargers charge EVs faster than standard chargers.
By bringing more supercharging stations to Jasper, Cooper says Parks, the municipality and local businesses are trying to attract an eco-friendly tourist demographic.
“An electric vehicle revolution is coming, nationwide,” says Cooper. “The federal government is budgeting big money for charging stations… They see this coming.”
In November, ATCO Electric paired with Quebec-based company AddÉnergie, according to Cooper. The federal government has provided AddÉnergie with money earmarked for EV charging stations, she says. ATCO has been bolstering the number of charging stations in the Calgary and Edmonton areas, according to media reports.
“Although the EV market is still small in Alberta, the development of a charging network is a crucial first step in driving electric vehicle adoption,” ATCO spokesperson said via email. “Our aim is to provide various solutions to meet customers’ future energy needs, including those for electric vehicles.”
Cooper estimated the cost of a supercharging station to be about $100,000. The municipality is looking at the old fire hall and behind the library as potential EV charging station locations.
In April 2017, The CBC reported there are 20,000 plug-in vehicles on Canadian roads and counting. If each province reaches its goals in cutting greenhouse gas emissions, the number of plug-in cars could jump to 500,000 on the road by 2020.
Bloomberg New Energy Finance’s Electric Vehicle Outlook 2017 — a long-term forecast of electric vehicle adoption worldwide — and the report suggested EVs could reach comparable pricing with combustion engine vehicles by 2025.
“Tumbling battery prices mean EVs will have lower lifetime costs, and will be cheaper to buy than internal combustion engine (ICE) cars in most countries by 2025-29,” the Bloomberg report reads.
The country is still trailing world market leaders due to a lack of charging infrastructure outside of Ontario, Quebec, and the southwest coast of British Columbia, and the limited availability of affordable EV models.
Cooper suggested Jasper has an opportunity to bridge a gap.
“People don’t have confidence… if they don’t have access to a lot of charging stations,” says Cooper. “In the cities it’s a perfect fit. But outside of these major centres… You really have to plot it out to ensure you have charging stations along the way.”
She added that with more charging stations, people who live in rural towns may have increased confidence when thinking about purchasing EVs, too.
A map of the charging stations in Canada (and all of North America) can be viewed at plugshare.com.
