Unfortunately, it's not a well-written article for excavating facts (pardon the pun).

Let's see if we can figure it out... people more knowledgeable on the subject please feel free to correct me.

All below costs are from the article:

1) Cost of charger $1200

2) Cost of load manager, if you want to go that way: "couple thousand dollars"

The article seems to indicate that a load manager would be an option instead of converting your house to 200 amps, so total cost would be around $3200.

It doesn't give costs for converting to 200 amps, only a rough speculative estimate on how much it would cost to dig up your underground conduit if your wires are buried, which the electrician says it could be: "low 20s to 45-thousand dollars".  So excavation costs to lay new wire and costs to restore what has been dug up... when it's not your only option.

Of course the media outlet has to include the $45,000 figure in the headline to draw you in and make money off your clicking on it.  I'm really frustrated at the poor quality of many media stories these days... sowing fear and anger so that they can make money, basically... 

There, that's all of my social commentary for the day...

Lemans64 wrote:

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Does sound a little high, but we had quotes to change our house from 125 amp to 200 service probably 15 years ago, was upward of 15k
New main panel, new service wires, move hydro meter. Repair drywall, install new mast ETC. Was also above ground service.  Hydro installs have gone up recently as well
so that may play a role as well. Although 45 does sound pretty high. Now if everyone in the neighbour hood has one and plugs in every night
will the hydro system we have enough power for that??

-- Edited by Lemans64 on Thursday 11th of November 2021 10:55:07 PM

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 As a journey man electrician for 46 years I say NOPE!

As Mark (MC) pointed out this story wasn't well written and didn't really give enough information about the various

costs of installing different EV chargers. The faster you want the charge to work, the higher the cost.

Not that the $45,000 isn't true,just that it's the cost of the very top end of

the chargers,none of the different levels were discussed in the story.

Interesting that a correction was added at the end of the story as it was written.

Correction

CTV News Edmonton has changed the headline of this article to reflect the story more accurately.

https://www.fixr.com/costs/home-electric-vehicle-charging-station

Level 1 Charging Station Cost

Level 1 chargers come free with your car purchase, or you can purchase a replacement for $300. They are not installed but plug directly into any 120-volt outlet, making them portable. They may take up to 24 hours to fully charge a battery, so they are generally only good for people who drive short distances or less frequently. Essentially, a Level 1 charger adds roughly 2 to 5 miles of driving range to your car for every hour you charge it. Many people keep a Level 1 charger on hand for when they are away from home. But if you do a fair amount of daily driving, you may find that this charger will not meet all your needs, unless you can plug it in everywhere you go when the car is not in use.

Level 2 Charging Station Cost

Level 2 charging stations cost between $300 to $1,200 on average. Most EV owners invest in Level 2 stations. They charge batteries much quicker, with most reaching a full charge in just a few hours. Even basic models completely charge a battery 4 to 6 times faster than a Level 1 charger. Level 2 stations require a 240-volt outlet, and they can be portable or mounted 2 and hardwired to your home. Some are specific to the car type, while others charge any car with an adaptor. They come with features like Wi-Fi and other add-ons, allowing you to customize your experience.

Level 3 Charging Station Cost

Level 3 charging stations range from $12,000 to $35,000 for the charger and hardware. These are designed for commercial use, not residential charging stations. They charge batteries incredibly quickly, fully charging a battery in under an hour. These stations can charge many vehicles at the same time and are not sold for residential purposes. Essentially, this is a large multi-car station. While it can be attractive to consider charging your car this quickly, most homes do not have the space or panel to accommodate them, as they require 480-volts. A second panel would likely need to be installed just for the station, and for most peoples needs, a Level 2 charger gives a full charge in enough time for even a busy family to get where they need to go.

here come the rolling brown outs, might have to put in a water generated power plant off my well so I have power when everyone plugging in

As we well know by now, they have a little over 13 years to figure it out.  Will there be mass chaos or will it be "meh"?  Only time will tell.

https://www.autoweek.com/news/green-cars/a36888320/canada-to-ban-new-gas-engine-car-sales/

Pontiacanada wrote:

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hawkeye5766 wrote:

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...nothing is free. For every action there is a reaction

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 Wise words. 

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 I thought it was "gas, grass, or..."  Oops! Wrong saying... remember reading it on a bumper sticker years ago, before political correctness became the norm...

hawkeye5766 wrote:

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If you think about the infrastructure and how the demand works on it. If you drive an EV to work,it's at work all day and you may plug it in to charge. It's when we all come home and plug in. Now it's dinner time,shower time etc. The load on our hydro system would be unreal at peak times. But if you plugged in when you went to bed,maybe the system could maintain it ? We would normally cut back on running our dams at night..but if we all plug in at night? Nothing is free.....weather it's gas,natural gas,hydro,sun. Where you save one way...you pay another.... Just my thoughts about it......nothing is free. For every action there is a reaction

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 Coming soon...... to a province near you......

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/experts-warn-albertans-to-lock-in-gas-and-electricity-rates-as-prices-set-to-soar-1.6242044