BC Hydro, the Province of British Columbia and the City of Vancouver have received three i MiEV pure electric vehicles from Mitsubishi Motor Sales of Canada Incorporated on November 20, 2009. Two cars will be added to BC Hydro’s fleet of vehicles and one will be added to the city’s. The province, Vancouver city and BC Hydro have signed an agreement with Mitsubishi Canada, and Mitsubishi Motor Sales of Canada Inc. earlier in 2009 to allow for the demonstration of the cars in British Columbia.
The agreement also allows for the addition of cars as the vehicles become available.
“We are very proud to demonstrate our leadership in climate-friendly transportation by having the first Mitsubishi all-electric cars right here in British Columbia,” said Blair Lekstrom, minister of energy, mines and petroleum resources, Province of British Columbia. “Electric vehicles like these ones, fuelled by clean, renewable energy, will help us achieve a low-carbon transportation future.”
“Vancouver is at the forefront of adopting electric vehicles, and we’re very pleased to be debuting Mitsubishi’s i MiEV in our City,” said Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson. “Supporting cleaner, more efficient forms of transportation moves us closer to our goal of becoming the world’s greenest city, and we’re very excited to partner with Mitsubishi in bringing their new electric vehicle technology to Canada.”
“As we get ready for the increased use of plug-in vehicles, it is very important to know how the cars will interact with BC Hydro’s grid and what their charging requirements will be,” said Bob Elton, BC Hydro president and chief executive officer. “The i MiEV will help us answer some of these questions while serving as a symbol of BC Hydro’s leadership in the demonstration of electric vehicles.”
“This is a first – the world’s first mass production electric car,” said Tomoki Yanagawa, vice-president Sales/Marketing & Corporate Planning of Mitsubishi Motors Sales of Canada Ltd. “It’s a first for Vancouver, a first for British Columbia, a first for North America. This is history in the making.”
BC Hydro is one of 30 utilities collaborating with the auto industry to prepare electrical infrastructure for a potential transition to electric vehicles. BC Hydro commissioned the development of guidelines for electric vehicle charging infrastructure earlier this year. In addition, BC Hydro is a key player in the local Plug-In Electric Vehicle Working Group, the development of the national electric vehicle technology roadmap and the EPRI-led utility/auto collaboration.
The City of Vancouver has been an early adopter of electric vehicle charging infrastructure. In 2008, the city introduced new requirements for electric vehicle charging in single-family homes. In 2009, Vancouver City Council passed a bylaw requiring new multi-family buildings to provide at least 20% of their parking spaces with electric vehicle charging capacity. The city is also expanding charging capacity in public parking locations.