Longo's grocery store, at 338 Dundas Street East in Oakville, recently saw the installation of seven new electric vehicle (EV) charging stations.
The installation is a result of a $499,500 investment to Longo Brothers Fruit Market Inc announced by the federal government on May 26, 2023.
These new stations can charge a car from 20% to 80% in 20 minutes, and will cost anywhere from $10-$25 per charge.
Yesterday, Tuesday, Feb. 20, Oakville MP Anita Anand, Mayor Rob Burton, Oakville North-Bulrington MP Pam Damoff, and members from Longo's, University of Toronto, as well as eCAMION Inc cut the ribbon on seven new level 3 EV charging stations from Jule.
Jule is a subsidiary of eCAMION who, in collaboration with Longo’s and the University of Toronto, is now at the beginning of a "number of more projects that are slated in the not-so-distant future," according to Jule's Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Vince Arone.
MP Anand addressed the crowd at the ribbon cutting, saying, "What we're doing is taking action on climate change to build a more sustainable future for our kids and our grandkids."
"How we move people and goods within our communities and across our country accounts for about 18% of greenhouse gas emissions," she continued, "that is the second largest source of emissions in Canada."
Anand said that 43,000 EV chargers will be built across the country, 10,000 of which are already in operation. This station features a 660 kWh battery system that powers seven 150 kW DC fast chargers.
The federal government partnered with Longo's last spring to roll out charging stations in their parking lots. These stations at Longo's on Dundas have been installed since last December, but Tuesday marked the official announcement.
The panel would not confirm whether Longo's in south Oakville would be receiving the same charging stations but they did say that more projects alike are coming soon.
Deb Craven, President of Longo’s, commented on the charging stations saying, "It shows to me that we're not just about providing amazing experiences and products inside the store, we're also about outside the store."
"It's just nice to have that well-rounded approach to making sure that we're there for the community when the community needs us."
Mayor Rob Burton also addressed the crowd saying, "This is the way the country progresses, this is the way life is improved for everybody and I can only congratulate you on your vision and your incredible success here today."
"You've solved, in addition to the need for people to be able to charge their cars conveniently, you've solved another problem" he continued "In Ontario, we've always struggled to have enough power generation to meet peak needs, and then overnight we have to actually spill power."
"By shifting people to battery fed power during the day, you will be preventing the necessity of billions of dollars in new generation capacity, and that will be a benefit to everybody," said Burton.
The investment for the EV stations was provided through Natural Resources Canada’s (NRCan) Zero Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Program (ZEVIP).