Industry experts disagree with Quebec's push for electric vehicle dominance

Gas stations scarcity a reality in Quebec? The Quebec government said there will be fewer gas stations in the future as more and more people switch to electric.

Quebec Environment Minister Benoit Charette says people should soon make the switch to electric vehicles as it may become difficult to find gas stations in the next decade.

Some experts, however, disagree with that statement.

Canadian Fuels Association Vice President Carol Montreuil says contrary to what Charette believes, the number of gas stations should not go down that drastically.

“This is wishful thinking...he’s taking his dreams for realities. Unfortunately, this will simply not happen,” said Montreuil.

According to the association, there are roughly 3,000 gas stations across Quebec.

Montreuil says in the last decade, that number has barely moved.

Data from Statistics Canada show that in 2023, Quebec residents bought more litres of car gas than ever before.

CAA-Quebec says there will still be a demand for gas - especially for older cars.

“For now, they don’t seem to be on sharp decline, that’s for sure. We still see new sites being opened,” said Jesse Caron, automotive expert at CAA-Quebec.

Currently, there are approximately 200,000 fully electric cars on Quebec roads.

The province says it wants to see more, setting a goal of two million by 2030.

In addition to that, the government says it plans to ban the sale of new gas-powered vehicles in 2035.

Montreal resident Alex Rajabi made the switch from a gas-powered vehicle to an EV roughly nine months ago.

“The gas has just gotten too insane, and I don’t see the prices ever going down,” he said.

However, Montreuil says when the province stops providing incentives for electric cars by 2027, people may no longer be keen on buying them.

He adds that the industry is already struggling.

“We’ve tried to go too quickly, too fast, spending too much public money in subsidies for technology that is simply too expensive,” said Montreuil.

Rajabi says he did not take advantage of the incentive program, but states he is happy he made the switch to an EV.

He says he would like to see charging ports at gas stations.

“The world is changing a bit and you’re not losing out on much if you add it to your business model,” he said.