Ottawa [Canada], July 12: Canadian Minister of Transport Omar Alghabra announced new incentives on Monday to encourage the adoption of medium- and heavy-duty zero-emission vehicles by Canadian businesses.
Starting on July 11, the four-year, close to 550 million Canadian dollar (440 million U.S. dollar) program will provide purchase incentives worth approximately 50 percent of the price difference between an electric vehicle and a traditional vehicle, the minister said in a press release.
These incentives, worth up to 200,000 Canadian dollars (160,000 U.S. dollars) per vehicle, will be applicable to purchase or lease commercial, medium- and heavy-duty zero-emission vehicles.
The federal incentives are able to be combined with provincial or territorial ones to make these vehicles even more affordable, the release said.
Medium- and heavy-duty vehicles are a significant contributor to Canada's greenhouse gas emissions. According to market researchers, freight trucks currently account for nearly 35 percent of Canada's transport sector emissions, and nearly 10 percent of Canada's overall emissions. This share has grown since 1990, when these figures were at 16 percent and 3 percent respectively.
Source: Xinhua