THE QUÉBEC GOVERNMENT AIMS TO ELECTRIFY ITS FLEET

By Anne Bourgoin

Thanks to its new government procurement policy, the Québec government aims to electrify 25% of its vehicle fleet by 2030, and 100% by 2040. The idea is to replace old gasoline-powered vehicles with electric ones.

Over the past two years, the Ministry of Transport has purchased 56 Ford F-150 Lightning Pro at $90,000 apiece, and is betting that this expenditure will pay for itself in fuel savings.

According to the ministry, the electric pickups bought by the government will need to be driven just over 20,000 km a year to break even. “There are really very interesting financial gains to be made over the life of the vehicle. This is due to the low cost of electricity in Québec,” points out Blandine Sebileau, project manager for transport electrification at Équiterre.