250 EV Chargers Installed In Winnipeg

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Two-hundred and fifty EV chargers have been installed at Winnipeg multi-family residential properties by Powertec Electric. “At Powertec Electric, we care deeply about the environment. Our sister company, Powertec Solar, focuses exclusively on solar panel installations because green solutions matter so much to us. Partnering with New Flyer, a company that cares about innovative, environmentally-friendly solutions, was a natural fit for us. The same is true for the residential properties where we installed EV chargers. We want green solutions to be available to everyone, and commercial projects are our bread and butter; we couldn’t be more pleased with how these projects went,” said Daniel Hartley, the President of Powertec Electric. 

The installation of new public EV chargers has kept up a steady pace over the last year despite some politicians trying to stop the adoption of electric vehicles. EV owners who live in single-family homes have their own chargers and can charge at home and in public. Many apartment and condo complexes do not yet have their own onsite EV chargers, so EV owners who live there must charge at public chargers. Multifamily complexes need their own chargers too, so that EV drivers who dwell there can enjoy the convenience of home charging and at lower rates than public charging..

Home charging is obviously far more convenient than charging at public chargers or workplace chargers. Condo and apartment complexes that install them may provide an incentive to condo buyers and apartment renters to move in and remain in their dwellings. The multifamily complexes that do not install EV chargers may experience less demand.and more turnover.

There are uneducated people who like to dismiss electric vehicles by falsely claiming that they “run on coal,” meaning their electricity comes from coal power plants. Well, no. In Manitoba, most electricity comes from hydropower. “Manitoba Hydro is the largest producer of electricity in Manitoba. It supplies most of the province’s electricity needs from 16 hydroelectric generating stations, the largest of which are located along the Nelson River.”

Manitoba doesn’t use coal to generate electricity. “Manitoba has phased out coal for electricity generation. The last coal-fired generating unit (Brandon) ceased operation in 2018 and is now being used as a synchronous condenser.”

Even for the grids that do have some electricity generated by coal power plants, their energy mixes are often getting cleaner from the addition of new solar and wind power. Additionally, there is a likelihood many coal power plants will shut down in the near future, as has been the trend. Eventually, many grids will not have any electricity produced by coal combustion because there won’t be any coal power plants in operation. Even with coal mixed into the electricity supply, electric vehicles are so much more efficient than gas-powered vehicles that they are still much cleaner.