Petro-Canada to build coast-to-coast electric vehicle charging network

Suncor-owned gas company Petro-Canada announced plans to build 50 EV charging stations across Canada.

A new section ofthe company’s website shows off a map of a nationwide charger network that will run alongside the Trans-Canada highway from what looks like Vancouver to the east coast of Nova Scotia. Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like the network will extend to Newfoundland and Labrador or anywhere north.

“Keeping Canadians moving is what we do. We know the needs of our customers are evolving as we transition to a low-carbon future which is why we are excited to expand our current offering to support this growing customer segment,” said Kris Smith, the executive vice president of Downstream and Suncor.

“We’re also investing in the fastest charging EV technology available today, which will be able to upgrade as technology advances easily,” adds Smith.

Petro-Canada’s EV stations will support CHAdeMO and CCS/SAE ports that can provide up to a 200kw charge. They’ll also be upgradeable so they can support 350kw charging with future upgrades, according to the company’s press release.

Petro-Canada is testing out an EV charger at a station in Milton, Ontario that EV owners can try for free until it’s no longer in beta.

Other Petro-Canada stations have EV chargers located at them, but it’s unclear if they’re Petro-Canada branded or third-party branded chargers.

MobileSyrup has reached out to Petro-Canada and Suncor for any information related to when the project will begin, how much it might cost and if that means Petro-Canada is no longer going to use third-party chargers at its stations.

Update 13/02/2019 2pm ET: Petro-Canada has clarified the over 50 new stations will all be Petro-Canada branded chargers.

Additionally, the company plans to begin construction on the EV charger corridor in the spring of 2019. It says it will add the new locations to its station finder as they are built.

Source: Petro-Canada