Ontario to Spend $91M to Expand Public EV Charger Network

There are now more than 1,800 public electric vehicle (EV) charging stations with over 5,000 charging ports in Ontario, but the numbers keep growing by the month.

This week, the Ford administration said it would spend an additional $91 million to help make EV chargers more accessible to people across the province.

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The new investment, which builds on the success of Ontario’s Ivy Charging Network, will add more EV chargers at highway rest stops, carpool parking lots, Ontario Parks and in community hubs like hockey arenas and municipal parks.

The province will also introduce the Rural Connectivity Fund to provide rural municipalities the opportunity to apply for provincial funding to support the installation of EV chargers in their communities. A June 2021 survey revealed that only 30 percent of rural Canadians were considering an EV for their next new vehicle purchase in part due to the lack of charging infrastructure. 

“Our government is getting shovels in the ground to build critical EV charging infrastructure across our province so workers and families can travel with confidence,” said Todd Smith, Minister of Energy. “Today’s investment in new public charging stations, alongside our work to reduce electricity prices and provide an ultra-low overnight electricity price plan, will support EV adoption and boost our world-leading auto sector as we build the cars of the future here in Ontario.”

In February, Ontario committed to bringing EV fast chargers to the province’s busiest highways with the launch of the first six ONroute charging stations in Cambridge South, Cambridge North, West Lorne, Dutton, Odessa and Napanee.

These six stations are part of a historic EV charger roll-out announced in December by the Ontario government, along with Hydro One and Ontario Power Generation's joint Ivy Charging Network that will see a total of 69 fast chargers built at all 23 ONroute locations.

Last year, Natural Resources Canada gave $2.3 million to Anvil Crawler Development Corporation to help install 36 public EV chargers across Ontario by September 30, 2022, as well as $235,000 to SWTCH Energy Inc. to help install 61 EV chargers in Ontario and Quebec.