NEWS RELEASE

AUGUST 17, 2026
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Repealing EVAS without replacing it with a GHG regulation will cost thousands of jobs

MONTREAL – Electric Mobility Canada (EMC) is disappointed by last week’s federal government decision announcing the repeal of its EV Availability Standard (EVAS), while promising a future GHG regulation to be adopted sometime in the future. EMC considers that many of the reasonings supporting the government’s decision are based on a significant number of problematic justifications.

Below are a few examples taken directly from The Canada Gazette announcement along with EMC’s corresponding analyses:

1. “As the zero-emission vehicle requirements are set to begin as of 2026, removing these requirements now would provide regulatory certainty for the industry.

Eliminating the regulation without replacing it now with new and predictable regulation actually increases the regulatory uncertainty and increases investment risk for the industry. This only adds to all the uncertainty that the EV industry has had to deal with in the past few years.

2. “The repeal of the Electric Vehicle Availability Standard is estimated to result in fewer zero-emission vehicles on the market, and fewer of these vehicles purchased in Canada than what was expected under the Electric Vehicle Availability Standard. This would result in avoided costs to vehicle purchasers, who would no longer bear the higher upfront cost of a zero-emission vehicle, and the associated cost of installing an at-home charging unit. These avoided costs are estimated to be $57.6 billion from 2026 to 2050”.

The higher upfront cost argument is increasingly outdated. Across Canada, more electric cars and trucks are now priced competitively with comparable gas and hybrid models. For example:

A Chevy Bolt EV is less expensive to buy than a Honda HRV;  A Tesla Model 3 is sold at approximately the same price as a Hyundai Sonata, a Toyota Camry hybrid or a gas Honda Accord; The Hyundai Ioniq 9 electric SUV is offered at approximately the same price as the Hyundai Palisade Hybrid; The upcoming Ford Fathom electric pickup truck will be the same price as the Ford Maverick pickup truck

3. “Conversely, these same consumers would forgo fuel and vehicle maintenance savings that accrue from electric vehicle ownership. Forgone fuel savings are estimated at $53.8 billion over the same period. These proposed Amendments would also be expected to result in net forgone greenhouse gas emission reductions of 326 megatonnes, valued at $94.2 billion in potential climate change-induced global damages, for a total net cost of $90.3 billion”.

The government’s own analysis includes two important caveats that significantly weaken this statement:

• “Forgone vehicle maintenance savings have not been monetized in this analysis.
• Air pollution emissions were quantified, but their health and environmental impacts were not quantified nor monetized”

These are not minor caveats. On maintenance alone, Canadians would save an estimated $554 million per year by driving electric rather than gas-powered vehicles, savings the government did not monetize in its analysis.

The same applies to air pollution. According to Health Canada, traffic-related air pollution carries annual socioeconomic costs of $9.5 billion and is linked to 1,200 premature deaths, impacts that were also left out of the government’s cost-benefit calculation.

4. “Any reduction in the risk of job losses in the Canadian auto sector needs to be considered in evaluating the costs and benefits of repealing the Electric Vehicle Availability Standard.”

More than 130,000 Canadians currently work in the EV Industry. Between 360,000 and 600,000 people will be employed in the EV industry by 2035. Yet the government’s document states nothing about the jobs that could be put at risk across the EV value chain – from construction, assembly and software development to mining, electricity production and distribution, charging infrastructure deployment, R&D, education and training. This is a serious and troubling omission in the government’s analysis.

EMC will participate in the consultation to ensure these significant gaps in the analysis are put on the record and fully addressed.

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MEDIA CONTACT: Anna Schuett, Communications Director | anna.schuett@emc-mec.ca | (514) 787-2757

Electric Mobility Canada is the unifying and authoritative voice for the transition to electric transportation across Canada. Founded in 2006, EMC is the national industry association that enables and accelerates the transition to sustainable electric mobility through advocacy, collaboration, education, and thought leadership, with the ultimate goal of creating a cleaner, healthier, and more prosperous future for all Canadians.