The Ontario government is taking the big incentives for EVs and applying them to bigger vehicles. Purchase an electric truck and businesses could see up to a $75,000 incentive.
The new incentives cover more than just electric trucks, though. Businesses that buy natural gas trucks or convert their existing fleet can get a cash too. And smaller changes like side skirts, aerodynamic tails, and cab heaters will also see incentives.
The big number is that $75,000 for an electric truck, but it's a bit more complicated than that. The province will give an incentive of 60 percent of the cost over what a conventional gas or diesel vehicle would use. That maxes out at $75,000. The 60 percent incentive also only applies to the first 10 applications between September 1 2017 and March 31 of next year. After that, it drops to 50 percent, still capped at $75,000.
Purchase or convert a truck to natural gas, and get 40 percent of the extra cost back, up to $30,000. After the first 10 that drops to 30 percent.
For companies that make their existing fleet more efficient by adding side skirts or tails, the incentive is 40 percent for early adopters and 30 percent after, capped at $2,000 per device.
The big incentives will help more business move to alternative power vehicles, although Tesla is already reportedly getting lots of orders for its electric truck. This could speed up the order rate for Tesla and for companies like BYD - who is planning an Ontario assembly plant. The electric trucks need to be delivered within six months of the application, though, which may keep Tesla out of the payouts for now.
More significantly, at least for the slow to turn over commercial fleet, existing vehicles will also see more benefits for increasing efficiency, on top of the potential of substantial fuel savings. Funding for green pilot projects will also be detailed next year.
Ontario is already possibly the most EV friendly province, at least in terms of incentives if not yet adoption rates, and the new Green Commercial Vehicle Program boosts that further.
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