The Letter / La lettre

Pour lire la lettre en français

An Open Letter to Prime Minister Carney: Stay the Course on Canada’s EV Future

October 14, 2025

The Right Honourable Mark Carney, P.C., M.P.
Prime Minister of Canada
Office of the Prime Minister
80 Wellington Street
Ottawa, ON K1A 0A2

Dear Prime Minister:

As executives from businesses operating in Canada’s electric vehicle (EV) industry, including charging solutions and deployment, vehicle manufacturers, charging installation and maintenance, and e-mobility technology solution providers, we write to you about Canada’s EV ambition. Together, we are building the backbone of Canada’s EV transportation economy.

Prime Minister Carney, we recognize your government’s recent decision to eliminate the 2026 interim target under the Electric Vehicle Availability Standard (EVAS) and undertake a 60-day review of the standard. We understand that evolving market realities, including the impact of tariffs and global market conditions, require thoughtful reflection. We support the government in taking this time to assess the policy and taking a measured approach that seeks balance between immediate economic realities and long-term climate competitiveness goals.

This review, however, comes at a pivotal moment. As you noted in your Sept 5th statement, transportation electrification is “creating significant opportunities for the Canadian economy, including new manufacturing jobs and expansions in Canada’s critical minerals mining and processing, which will benefit rural communities”. The industry has already been central to unlocking tens of billions in investment, new facilities, and more than 130,000 Canadian jobs, numbers that are projected to grow significantly by 2030.

Businesses have made these significant investments in response to Canada’s clear signal that it is serious about building a globally competitive EV economy. Abrupt shifts to weaken or eliminate the EVAS risk undermining investor confidence and signaling that Canada is retreating from the very demand signals to which it asked industry to respond.

The EVAS is more than a climate measure; it is a crucial part of Canada’s industrial strategy and a strategy to invest in Canada’s workers. It leverages Canada’s clean energy, skilled workforce, and innovation ecosystem. It lowers transportation costs for Canadians, strengthens domestic supply chains, and ensures utilities can plan for and invest in the critical utility upgrades needed to meet future demand.

We understand that policies must evolve with changing realities. But evolution doesn’t mean retreat. Canada should stand firm on EVAS and provide clear direction. We therefore encourage your government, in the course of this review to:  

• Maintain the EVAS framework, while considering reasonable policy adjustments to ensure the policy remains effective and durable;
• Reinstate and expand vehicle purchase incentives in a predictable fashion; and
• Accelerate charging infrastructure deployment, especially in underserved, rural and northern communities and multifamily dwellings.

The EVAS is the backbone of Canada’s sustainable mobility future. Eliminating it would risk losing momentum, jobs, and credibility, and undermine Canada’s investments in our workers and economy. Maintaining the standard with reasonable adjustments will allow Canada to build on its EV industrial leadership, attract long-term investment, and ensure affordability for Canadian drivers.

While we cannot ignore current market realities, they should not be allowed to define Canada’s future. The greater risk to Canada’s EV industry is not tariffs, but policy uncertainty at home. Canada’s EV sector is ready to meet the moment. We ask for your government’s commitment to provide the clear, ambitious, and stable policy direction that will allow us to do so.