A growing interest in electric vehicles – due to skyrocketing gas prices – coupled with a federal government mandate calling for all new cars, light duty vehicles and passenger trucks sold by 2035 to have zero emissions, has prompted Entegrus to take action to be prepared.
A growing interest in electric vehicles – due to skyrocketing gas prices – coupled with a federal government mandate calling for all new cars, light-duty vehicles and passenger trucks sold by 2035 to have zero emissions has prompted Entegrus to take action to be prepared.
Entegrus Inc. president and CEO Jim Hogan said three years ago a customer survey by the utility found low interest by respondents to own an electric vehicle.
However, the response changed significantly during a 2021 customer survey.
Hogan said about 40 per cent of Entegrus customers indicated they are seriously looking at an electric vehicle.
He said the utility, of which Chatham-Kent is a majority shareholder, is doing two things to support the arrival of more electric vehicles in the future.
“We need to make sure we have a modern distribution system,” Hogan said.
The system requires updates, he added, “because if we get 40 per cent penetration of electric vehicles that’s quite a drain on our system.”
Entegrus has already been reinvesting in its system for a number of years to modernize it, Hogan said.
“Much of our distribution system was built in the 1950s,” he added.
He said wire is being upgraded to be able to handle more electricity going through it. He added more or and larger transformers are also needed to handle the anticipated increase in demand for electricity.
“It’s just doing all those things that will ensure more electricity can be delivered to our customers,” Hogan said.
However, he said the system upgrade is not being done just for the arrival of electric vehicles, but to benefit all customers.
“We’re going to have a modern system it’s going to be more reliable.”
The investment in upgrading the system is built into the rates, but Hogan said, the “Ontario Energy Board regulates our rates so they make sure the customers are getting the best value for their rates.”
Federal Transport Minister Omar Alghabra announced late last June that all new cars and light-duty trucks sold in Canada by 2035 will be zero emission.
“Let me just say, our target is ambitious, undoubtedly, but it is a must,” Alghabra said. “We believe that it’s possible. It needs determination. It needs focus. It needs effort.”
Hogan said Entegrus is seeking funding from Natural Resources Canada to help commercial and industrial operations served by the utility install electrical chargers.
“We’re not going to do the investments directly, but we’re going to do a lot of things to help our customers make those investments,” he said.
Hogan said the funding won’t do anything for the local electrical system; it just gets money into the hands of commercial and industrial customers to put electric vehicle chargers on their properties for their own requirements.
With files from Canadian Press