Cutting the popular provincial rebate program for electric vehicles will make hitting government-mandated targets for EV sales impossible, said the head of the New Car Dealers Association of B.C. (NCDA).

On Tuesday, April 29, the B.C. government announced a pause on the CleanBC Go Electric rebate program, which gave consumers with incomes under $100,000 between $1,000 and $4,000 towards the purchase of an EV, and between $500 and $2,000 for the purchase of a plug-in hybrid.

The announcement comes in the wake of the federal government's shutdown of its $5,000 rebate program for new EVs.

"During this time of economic instability, the province is reviewing programs to ensure that they best meet the needs of people in B.C.," the announcement said.

Buyers in B.C. can still get the rebate if they can line up their purchase or lease by May 15, after which the program will be paused for a review.

The NCDA, which has administered the program for the province, said this will raise the cost of EVs and make it impossible for car dealers to hit ambitious targets to reduce sales of internal combustion engine (ICE) cars in favour of more EVs.

香蕉视频直播淭here is a lot to consider when weighing the cost and benefit of an electric vehicle, but typically, price is at the top of the list,香蕉视频直播� said Blair Qualey, president and CEO of the NCDA, based in Langley.

香蕉视频直播淥ver the course of the program, when there were lapses in funding, we saw a dramatic decline in ZEV [zero emission vehicle] sales, and we truly hope that government will see the logic in retaining the program.香蕉视频直播�

Increasing adoption of EVs was balanced by three pillars, Qualey said.

The first was bridging the price gap between traditional ICE vehicles and newer, more expensive EVs. While the price of EVs has come down as battery technology improves and efficiencies of scale are found, they're still higher in cost.

Second, the government needed to ensure there was a robust charging infrastructure in place. The province's latest report said there are now more than 7,000 charging stations in B.C., up from 781 in 2016.

The third leg is to educate people about EVs, Qualey said.

The first wave of EV purchasing was driven by early adopters 香蕉视频直播� the kind of people who are excited by new technology and want to get their hands on it right away.

However, the latest data in the annual provincial report showed a slight dip in EV purchases in 2024, the first since the government began tracking sales in 2015.

There were 199,580 new light cars and trucks bought here in 2024, and 44,656, or 22.4 per cent, of those were EVs, according to the province's annual report, which was released on Tuesday, April 29.

The percentage of sales is down from 22.7 per cent in 2023, and for now appears to have levelled off after years of fairly rapid growth 香蕉视频直播� which made B.C. one of the jurisdictions with the most EV sales in North America.

The province began tracking EV sales in 2015, when 0.8 per cent of cars sold were EVs. The rate began rising sharply in 2018, when it hit 4.1 per cent, then 8.7 per cent the following year.

The report says that almost 195,000 light-duty EVs are registered in B.C., compared to just 5,000 in 2016.

The number of medium- and heavy-duty EVs, which includes trucks, buses, large vans, as well as off road vehicles, boats, and airport utility vehicles, saw 400 new registrations in 2024. That represented 2.6 per cent of new vehicle registrations in that category.

Qualley said that without rebates from Ottawa or Victoria, and with tariffs poised to drive the cost of cars higher, it will be impossible for car manufacturers and dealers to hit targets of EV sales.

Provincial policy requires 26 per cent of all light vehicles sold in the province to be ZEVs by 2026, and 90 per cent by 2030.

There are significant penalties 香蕉视频直播� of $20,000 per vehicle 香蕉视频直播� for automakers that fail to hit those targets.

In response, car makers could reduce the number of ICE vehicles they allow into B.C., Qualey said, and that will drive up the price of all types of cars, including new and used cars, as supply shrinks.

He compared it to the situation during the COVID-19 pandemic when vehicle-related prices skyrocketed for anything with wheels.