Electric cars are growing in both popularity and potential around the world. From the exciting models we saw at the Detroit Auto Show a couple of weeks ago, to the UK’s impending 2030 ban on the sale of gasoline models, it’s become clear that the future of transportation is bright — and battery-based.
This is especially true for Canada, as consistent industry wins continue to spur the state of the domestic EV market.
A report recently released by two prominent research groups seems to confirm this, stating that it sees Canada as a potentially ‘major player’ in the world’s adoption and transition to electric vehicles.
That is of course, if all the right things can fall into place.
Plenty of Potential
According to Evan Pivnick, one of the authors of ‘Canada’s New Economic Engine,’ the country “has all the right ingredients” to be a powerhouse (no pun intended) in the global EV industry.
And he’s not wrong. As the world’s second largest country with an abundance of natural resources, the Great North has plenty of infrastructure, minerals, and metals to work with.
The only challenge to unlocking the full value of this opportunity? Acting “swiftly and decisively,” says the report.
Taking the Wrong Approach
Despite its economic prominence, Pivnick and his report — published by British Columbia’s Simon Fraser University in partnership with Ontario-based Trillium Network for Advanced Manufacturing — argue that Canada has long taken the wrong approach to the way it capitalises upon its domestic product.
“We have to avoid the errors we made for 150 years,” Brendan Sweeney, managing director of the Trillium Network for Advanced Manufacturing, says. What he’s largely referring to is what economic historians call the ‘staples trade,’ which is when a country or colony exports its primary resources without much processing.
In other words, Canada has been shipping out its raw materials — for example, wheat, fish, and iron — for decades, while other nations use them to create higher-value products that are then shipped back. This system keeps Canada’s economy relatively low on the global totem pole, and it’s something that the country will need to change if it wants to be a leader in the EV space.
An Opportunity for Change
Experts like Sweeney see an opportunity for Canada to make good use of its existing infrastructure and bountiful mineral reserves in the production of battery components.
“We turn the minerals, the metals that we mine in Canada into really highly value-added cathode active materials, anode materials, electrolyte [the solution inside batteries,]” he says. Making as many of these materials as possible domestically would create jobs and help to establish the country as a go-to for battery technology.
The International Energy Agency forecasts global demand for battery minerals like those Sweeney is mentioning to grow 30 times larger than its current levels by 2040.
Merran Smith, chief innovation officer at Clean Energy Canada, backs that statement up saying “batteries are really going to be the centre of this new clean energy system” in the coming years.
And if Canada could back that need up, the results could be lucrative. The same report referenced earlier states that the country’s EV sector could add as many as 250,000 jobs by 2030, and contribute a whopping $48 billion to the national economy each year if things go well.
What Stands in the Way?
At this point, success in domestic electric vehicle growth relies on three main things: policy, investment, and competitiveness.
The country’s policies will need to shift in order to provide the right framework that would allow for industry to grow. And with the right policies in place, comes investment, from both the public and private sector.
Keeping pace with the United States is another obstacle that stands in Canada’s way of achieving a full-scale, prosperous electric vehicle market. As the world’s largest economy, Canada’s closest neighbour, and most important trading partner, the US will have a significant impact on the way the Canadian market develops.
The key to mitigating this again goes back to policy. Experts believe that by properly aligning its domestic EV regulations and trade goals with those of the US, Canada can be a partner in, and possibly even beneficiary of the southern electric vehicle market.
All that’s left now? Action. Authors of ‘Canada’s New Economic Engine’ say that the time to make a move is now, while prospects are still young.
