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September 22, 2023 by Adam Malik
A Toyota Camry hybrid on display at the 2023 Canadian International AutoShow in Toronto
Few countries have weather like Canada so it stands to reason why Canadians would prefer to go with hybrid electric vehicles more often than anyone else.
Globally, hybrids represent about 4-5 per cent of any market share in the future. In Canada’s case, that number sits at about 11 per cent, according to S&P Global Mobility’s Q2 Canadian Automotive Insights.
“The main reason behind it is weather,” explained Guido Vildozo, senior manager of Americas light vehicles sales forecasting at S&P Global Mobility. “We know that there’s an infrastructure challenge up north; 5 per cent of the population is in the northern territories [and] in the Prairies. Battery performance is not the same in this kind of weather.”
So Canadians will buy future vehicles with that in mind. “So we now forecast that Canada will actually have the highest plug in hybrid ratio of any market around the world because of weather conditions here,” he said during the session Canadian outlook and driving to an electric vehicle future at AIA Canada’s National Conference in the spring.
This doesn’t just cater to areas where infrastructure is lacking but to the fact that last-mile delivery can’t be counted on in a battery electric vehicle if the weather doesn’t co-operate. And that extends beyond just delivery services.
“You can’t depend on battery electric for an ambulance given whether here or a fire truck, for example, further down the road,” Vizdolo pointed out.
Why Canada will be the hybrid hot spot
A Toyota Camry hybrid on display at the 2023 Canadian International AutoShow in Toronto
Few countries have weather like Canada so it stands to reason why Canadians would prefer to go with hybrid electric vehicles more often than anyone else.
Globally, hybrids represent about 4-5 per cent of any market share in the future. In Canada’s case, that number sits at about 11 per cent, according to S&P Global Mobility’s Q2 Canadian Automotive Insights.
“The main reason behind it is weather,” explained Guido Vildozo, senior manager of Americas light vehicles sales forecasting at S&P Global Mobility. “We know that there’s an infrastructure challenge up north; 5 per cent of the population is in the northern territories [and] in the Prairies. Battery performance is not the same in this kind of weather.”
So Canadians will buy future vehicles with that in mind. “So we now forecast that Canada will actually have the highest plug in hybrid ratio of any market around the world because of weather conditions here,” he said during the session Canadian outlook and driving to an electric vehicle future at AIA Canada’s National Conference in the spring.
This doesn’t just cater to areas where infrastructure is lacking but to the fact that last-mile delivery can’t be counted on in a battery electric vehicle if the weather doesn’t co-operate. And that extends beyond just delivery services.
“You can’t depend on battery electric for an ambulance given whether here or a fire truck, for example, further down the road,” Vizdolo pointed out.
