Assessment of Electric Vehicle Incentive Policies in Canadian Provinces

Abstract

This study aims to find the effects of financial point of sales incentives on the sales of electric vehicles across the Canadian provinces from September 2012 to December 2016. My findings indicate that purchase incentives cause the sales of new electric vehicles to increase by 8 percent on average due to a $1000 increase in incentives. I find that 47% of electric vehicle sales across the rebating provinces (Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia) are attributed to the purchase incentives. Results of the counter-factual simulations imply that the cost of eliminating one tonne of carbon emissions across the provinces that offer incentives over the years of my study is, on average, $216/tonne CO2.