Driving an electric vehicle saves you big bucks: B.C. Hydro survey
Consumers could save thousands of dollars a year by switching over from vehicle powered by gas. Driving an electric vehicle costs about 80 per cent less than a fossil-fueled vehicle
The longer your commute, the more you save by driving an electric vehicle, according to a survey released Friday by B.C. Hydro.
The provincial power utility estimates that consumers could save thousands of dollars a year by switching from a vehicle powered by fossil fuels to one powered by electricity.
A commuter driving the 80-km round trip from Surrey to Vancouver, for example, would spend $409 a year in an electric Nissan Leaf, according to the survey.
Driving a fossil-fuelled Honda Civic would cost an estimated $2,200 or about $1,700 more a year; a Toyota RV4, $2,519, or $2,000 more; and a Ford F150, $3,779 or $3,200 more.
The B.C. Hydro calculations are based on an electric vehicle costing the equivalent of 25 cents a litre in gasoline.
Gasbuddy.com on Thursday listed 10 gas stations in Vancouver with per litre prices ranging from $1.55 to $1.66.
“Fuelling costs for an electric vehicle are about 80 per cent less,” said Tanya Fish, a senior media relations adviser for B.C. Hydro.
“The more you drive, the more you save on your fuelling costs.”
Fish said B.C. Hydro wanted to look at the cost of commuting with an electric vehicle given that gasoline prices are so high in Metro Vancouver.
“It’s very topical,” she said.
“I think more and more people are exploring the switch to electric vehicles given that they’ll save significantly on fuelling and maintenance.”
Fish said B.C. Hydro reported that last April that there were slightly fewer than 9,000 electric vehicles on the road. Now there are about 18,000.
By 2030, B.C. Hydro estimates there will be about 350,000 electric vehicles in the province. They will use the equivalent of 1,050 gigawatts hours per year of energy – the same amount of power used by 97,000 homes.
“It’s something we’re planning for to ensure we can handle the load on the system,” she said.
She said B.C. Hydro plans to add another 23 fast-charging electric vehicle charging stations this year to the existing network of 58. A fast-charge station can charge an electric vehicle to 80 per cent in 30 minutes or less.
The province estimates that consumers can choose from among 44 clean energy vehicles in B.C. priced at $33,000 to $50,000, before incentives. The lowest EV starts at about $29,000.
In B.C., there are three programs available that could provide a consumer with up to $16,000 in rebates and incentives for buying an electric vehicle.
• CEV for B.C. Vehicle Incentive program provides point-of-sale incentives of up to $5,000 to buy or lease a new battery electric vehicle (it’s up to $6,000 if you buy or lease an hydrogen-fuel cell vehicle).
• Scrap-It Program is a $6,000 incentive available for buying a new, qualifying electric vehicle from participating car dealerships if you’re replacing an internal combustion vehicle older than 2008. The provincial government estimates about 40 incentives are still available in 2019 from selected car dealers.
• The federal iZEV program offers up to a $5,000 point of sale rebate for electric battery vehicles up to $60,000. (The rebate is up to $6,000 for a hydrogen-fuel cell vehicle.)
Norway expects 50 per cent of new car sales this year will be electric. In March, the country set a new record with electric vehicles comprising 58.4 per cent of all new car sales.
Source: vancouversun
