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Canada

The provincial government of British Columbia hopes to attract even more to adopt electric vehicles with the removal of provincial sales tax (PST) from used zero-emission vehicles.

British Columbia offers one of the most enticing EV incentives in Canada. The PST exemption applies to both zero-emission vehicles sold by car dealers and the private sales of such used vehicles that have been driven for at least 6,000 km.

This new policy started on February 23, 2022, and has an end date on February 22, 2027.

In addition to this new incentive, the provincial government has increased its passenger vehicle surtax threshold for zero-emission vehicles from $55,000 to $75,000. This is intended to address the greater acquisition cost of an electric-battery vehicle compared to a conventional gas vehicle, which is generally less expensive. According to the provincial government, zero-emission vehicle ownership is currently greatest among households with annual incomes of over $150,000, given the higher initial cost of buying an electric-battery vehicle.

In October 2021, the provincial government created more ambitious emission targets, with 100% zero-emission vehicle sales now set to begin in 2035 instead of 2040.

The government of Ontario has announced that it will partner with Electra, Glencore plc and Talon metals to develop North America's first battery-grade nickel sulfate facility. 

The government and Electra will be investing $250,000 each along with $100,000 each from Glencore pls and Talon Metals.

These investments is to study and collaborate on potentially building a nickel sulfate plant and a battery precursor cathode active materials plant to be located beside an existing cobalt refinery and recycling factory.

Nickel sulfate, refers to the inorganic compound that is a highly soluble blue green coloured salt and is mainly used for the electroplating of nickel. Nickel electroplating is a technique used to apply a thin layer of nickel onto a metal object. The nickel layer provides corrosion resistance and wear resistance.

The idea behind building these factories in proximity is to allow the companies to work more efficiently to build battery parts from raw and mined materials.

Electra, the company spearheading this operation, hopes to get all of these buildings under construction by 2025 at the latest. However, the company is getting closer to building the battery-grade cobalt sulfate refinery, so construction could launch as early as 2023.

Electra is hoping to supply 1.5 million EV batteries to the world annually.

Grizzl-E Smart EV Charger - A Great Choice for Both Home and Commercial Use

United Chargers has just re-launched its Grizzl-E Smart EV Charger for home and commercial electric vehicle charing. This is the first mass-produced EV Charger in North America that can connect to any EV Charging software provider that supports OCPP (Open Charge Point Protocol). With its OCPP connection and available ChargeLab commercial software, the Grizzl-E Smart is the most versatile and affordable commercial EV Charging solution on the market today that can connect to owners' choice of 3rd party software for connecting and billing. The Grizzl-E Smart starts at $539.

With Wi-Fi Smart Connectivity, the Grizzl-e Smart EV Charger lets users get detail information about how their electric vehicle is working at any given moment and take control of charging options by viewing their car’s charging statistics and controlling their charger remotely. The system also lets you set a charging schedule and work with any Demand/Response utility programs that are available.

The Grizzl-E Smart EV Charger comes with a premium 24-foot cable, mounting kit, and an EasyEVPlug Holster cable management system.

Here are the product specifications for the AC Level 2 unit:

• Powerful 40-amp (10 kW) delivery

• Adjustable power: 40a, 32a, 24a and 16a

• J1772 Type 1 connector

• Up to 30 miles per hour charging speed

• Available with either NEMA 14-50 or NEMA 6-50 plug configurations (can also be hardwired by a licensed electrician)

• IP67 water and fire-resistant indoor/outdoor enclosure

• Can be installed indoors or outdoors - has a NEMA 4 aluminum cast robust enclosure for Canadian winters

• Energy Star Certified and UL Certified for USA and Canada

• Proudly made in Canada

EV Around the World 🌏

Rideshare company Uber is taking steps to get more drivers into EVs.

Following a pilot program, Uber has expanded its collaboration with electric vehicle charger manufacturer Wallbox. The nationwide partnership offers a discounted package to Uber drivers that includes a Wallbox Pulsar Plus charger, along with installation and financing options.

The EV charging package will be rolled out shortly and is scheduled to reach all across the US (excluding Alaska) by the end of April. The two companies are also discussing a global rollout of the program, beginning in Europe and Canada.

Uber also offers drivers of EVs a Zero Emissions incentive that pays them an extra $1 on every Uber trip (up to $4,000 annually).

Harley-Davidson's sub-brand LiveWire, that manufacturers and sells its all-electric motorcycles is targeting 100,000 units by 2026.

The company plans to increase that growth rate even further to 190,000 total electric motorcycle sales by 2030, according to an investor prospectus released by Harley-Davidson.

H-D’s sales targets sound overly ambitious, especially considering that Harley sold between 1,300 to 1,600 electric motorcycles between 2019 and the first nine months of 2021.

Although reviews of the Harley-Davidson LiveWire has been largely positive within the industry for top quality, critics believe the nearly $30,000 USD price will not help electric motorcycle adoption or sales.

Near the end of 2021 was when Harley-Davidson decided to spin off its electric motorcycle operations into a sub-brand called LiveWire. The Harley-Davidson LiveWire electric motorcycle then was renamed to LiveWire One (looking exactly the same other than logo), shedding around $8,000 from its MSRP, to $22,000, and bringing its price tag much closer in line with flagship electric motorcycles from competitors such as Zero Motorcycles and Energica.

Now the sub-brand LiveWire is moving forward with its second electric motorcycle model, this time designed on the more affordable “Arrow” platform.

This new design uses a structural battery pack in lieu of the traditional frame found on the LiveWire One. It also employs a more conventional direct drive electric motor instead of the highly engineered, complicated and costly Revelation electric motor that Harley’s engineers designed for the original Harley-Davidson LiveWire.

These moves are expected to produce a much more affordable middleweight electric motorcycle that should compete more effectively against electric motorcycles from other brands and even conventional gas-powered motorcycles.

QuickEV

• [VIDEO] 780hp Lamborghini Aventador SVJ vs Tesla Model S Plaid.

• Fiat Wants To Only Sell Electric Cars In Europe After 2027.

• [VIDEO] Carwow BMW iX Review.

• Could wind and solar towers charge EVs and stabilize grid?

• Volvo Car USA announces new design-focused S60 Black Edition.

• [VIDEO] Chinese EV Maker Nio’s automatic battery swap station.

• BYD Sales In 2022 Might Reach 1.5 Million Plug-In Cars.

• Hacked EV chargers in Russia “Putin is a d*ckhead” and “glory to Ukraine”

• A company I have personally been keeping an eye on - VinFast. Relatively affordable with larger SUV sizes to suit the family!

EV Meme of the Week