Montréal, May 27, 2021

Facilitating electric vehicle charging in urban centers with 4,500 new stations

The Electric Circuit, in partnership with Québec’s municipalities, will be rolling out 4,500 standard charging stations by 2028, to meet the needs of electric vehicle drivers who do not have access to home charging.

To support this important initiative, a grant program is being offered exclusively to municipalities, through which Hydro-Québec is providing financial assistance of up to $12,000 per standard charging station.

Charging stations must meet one of the following charging needs:

• Overnight charging in neighborhoods where electric vehicle owners do not have access to private outdoor outlets
• Daytime charging downtown and near shops

In addition, the municipality must allow access to the curbside station 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and offer free parking in front of the curbside station from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m.

Application deadline

Municipalities who wish to contribute to this effort to accelerate transportation electrification must submit their duly completed grant application and all required documents by August 31, 2021, at 11:59 p.m. For more information or to submit a request:

lecircuitelectrique.com/en/4500-program/

For the first two years, the program is exclusively for curbside charging stations, made up of two standard stations, installed where electric vehicles parked on the street can use them.

Quotes

“Transportation electrification is central to both reducing GHG emissions and transforming our economy. Our government has ambitious goals for Québec and this important announcement about the roll-out of electric vehicle charging stations is yet another indication of our commitment to the energy transition.”

Jonatan Julien, Québec Minister of Energy and Natural Resources

“This is great news for Québec’s cities and municipalities! Making it possible for residents who rent, and even some homeowners, to charge their vehicles when the option is otherwise not available to them will help us meet our goal of increasing the number of electric vehicles in Québec, so that, collectively, we can drastically reduce GHGs in Québec.”

Benoit Charette, Minister of the Environment and the Fight Against Climate Change

“The addition of these 4,500 charging stations is excellent news for the electric vehicle drivers of today and tomorrow who will have easier access to charging near their homes or workplaces. For municipalities, this is a great opportunity to support the growing number of residents who are choosing electric vehicles.”

France Lampron, Director – Transportation Electrification at Hydro-Québec 

About the Electric Circuit

The Electric Circuit is the largest public charging network in Québec. It consists of more than 3,100 public charging stations, including 466 fast-charge stations, in every region of the province. Electric Circuit users have access to a 24/7 telephone help line as well as a charging-station locator service. The Electric Circuit website, lecircuitelectrique.com/en/, and the Electric Circuit mobile app for iOS and Android are updated as new stations are commissioned. The Electric Circuit card also gives users access to the FLO network and New Brunswick’s eCharge network.

Information:

Louis-Olivier Batty,
Press Officer
Hydro-Québec, for the Electric Circuit
514 289-4214
batty.louis-olivier@hydroquebec.com