Here’s what some industry executives and policy experts think Ottawa can do to help Canada’s EV industry get into gear.“We could use procurement as a demand-driven policy to make sure that our startups, SMEs, or even companies who do R&D here have a market for these new products and services. If the government would say, ‘All my fleet will be [in] the next 10 years,’ that would make a difference. We have to work on the demand side, so that you build some scale.
“In Quebec, we have another company that is producing electric buses. We had discussions in the past with them. We realized that the voltage of our battery was at 600V, and the electric drivetrain of their bus was at 800V. That means my battery is not compatible with their electric platform. Both [companies] could have an advantage to work together to develop the internal market.