$1.4 Million to Make New Brunswick First Fully Connected Province
January 19, 2018
New Brunswickers will benefit from the installation of nine additional e-charging sites in the province. The 1.4 million dollars investments will double the fast-charge eCharge Network and will make New Brunswick the first fully connected province in Canada with a DC Fast charging network for electric vehicles.
The investments include $774, 500 from the Province of New Brunswick, which includes $577,000 from NB Power and $197,500 from the Regional Development Corporation as well as $647, 500 from the Government of Canada, which includes $ 450,000 from Natural Resources Canada and $ 197,500 from the federal Gas Tax Fund.
“The climate change action plan calls for a collaborative approach to creating the strategic infrastructure to support electric vehicles, and we’re proud to be a partner in such a progressive plan to build greener infrastructure and support the low-carbon economy,” said Environment and Local Government Minister Serge Rousselle. “Today’s announcement is exciting news and shows that by working together we’ve positioned New Brunswick as a leader in supporting electric transportation.”
The new fast chargers will be accompanied by Level 2 charger at each location.
Since this past summer, ten fast charge sites have been installed in New Brunswick. The new sites announced today almost double the capacity and include many rural communities throughout the province.
“Expanding the network of electric vehicle charging stations, in New Brunswick and across the country, will give Canadians more transportation options and help put more clean vehicles on our roads and highways”, said Member of Parliament for Acadie-Bathurst and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Serge Cormier. “Congratulations to NB Power and its partners for helping to advance our federal and provincial efforts to build a clean economy, create well-paying jobs, and realize our climate change goals.”
Electric vehicle owners can reduce their fuel-related costs by about 80% while reducing their carbon footprint by 80%.
“We are very proud to spearhead this first in Canada,” said NB Power president and CEO, Gaëtan Thomas. “By having a network of fast chargers throughout our province, it will give electric vehicles owners the peace of mind they need when they are travelling from one point to another. It will reduce range anxiety.”
The new chargers will be in the following locations:
- Saint Quentin
- Eel River Bar
- Bathurst
- Tracadie
- Miramichi
- Doaktown
- Richibucto
- Rothesay
- South Western New Brunswick
The new chargers will join existing chargers that were installed since last summer in the following locations:
- Edmundston
- St. André (Grand Falls)
- Perth-Andover
- Beardsley (Woodstock)
- Prince William
- Waasis (Lincoln)
- Youngs Cove
- Salisbury
- Magnetic Hill
- Aulac
About the eCharge Network:
The eCharge Network is NB Power’s public charging program for electric vehicles. The eCharge Network is made up of standard level-2 (240 volt) charging stations located throughout the province and will result in 19 fast-charging stations (400 volt) not only along the TransCanada Highway from Edmundston to Aulac, but throughout the entire province.