Ottawa’s recent 100% surcharge on Chinese electric vehicles is counterproductive to government goals and costly for consumers, experts say.
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The holder of the Chair in Energy Sector Management at HEC Montréal, Pierre-Olivier Pineau, gave a portrait of the situation to TVA Nouvelles.
“Prices are going to be higher,” he said. “This will limit the progression of electric vehicles on the Quebec and Canadian markets. […] There will be less diversity in offers and models.”
Ottawa wants all vehicles sold in the country to be electric by 2035. Pierre-Olivier Pineau believes that the surtax is counterproductive in this context.
“By removing subsidies gradually, as will be the case in 2025, and by putting additional customs duties on Chinese vehicles, it will cost consumers more. This will probably make it impossible to reach the targets.”
The prices of some vehicle models are likely to double, believes Philippe Fortier, vice-president of operations at Groupe Tadeo. “Someone who had Volvo, Polestar or Tesla vehicles on their shopping list simply ends up with three fewer vehicles,” he pointed out. […] If we look at the XC 60 T8 plug-in, we’re talking about a bill that can be around $80,000. Having a bill that can be $160,000 all at once makes a difference.”
Mr. Fortier recalled that manufacturers risk moving their production to other countries to avoid the surcharge.
No drop
For his part, automotive columnist Antoine Joubert believes that “the manufacturers who are already in place have no intention of bringing vehicles that would be sold below the $40,000 or $35,000 mark.”
For reference, a BYD Seagull vehicle sells for $16,000. It has a range of 405 kilometers, while a Nissan Leaf automobile has 240 kilometers of range for a price of $42,000.
“We don’t expect comparable vehicles [aux automobiles chinoises] in terms of price,” said Antoine Joubert.
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