COLD LAKE – Concerns have been raised by the City of Cold Lake over unexpected costs tied to its two electric vehicle (EV) charging stations, located at City Hall and the Energy Centre.
Installed in late 2023 and fully operational by mid-2024, these chargers are now proving costly to maintain, with officials at the Oct. 15 Corporate Priorities Committee meeting highlighting steep utility bills and high transmission and distribution (T&D) fees.
Although these chargers are increasingly popular, their operational costs far exceed revenue, leaving the City to absorb a growing deficit.
Despite positive utilization experienced, the financial aspect remains a concern. Azam Khan, general manager of infrastructure services with the City stated, “We are losing over $7,000 on this utility, all other expenses included.”
Ultimately, City administrators and council members agreed to explore more cost-effective solutions, including the possibility of adjusting the billing setup or exploring alternative metering options to reduce T&D fees.
“This report is to provide an update on the two electric vehicle chargers that were installed late last year and were kind of put into commission earlier this year,” Khan told council members, as he presented the information.
He added, "Due to some technical issues, the chargers were not fully available until June, or July of this year."
Since becoming operational, usage of the chargers has increased.
According to Khan, “We have a unique 81 users that have used them. Everybody has an app to connect with this thing, and we're assuming that 81 different people use it, but some households can have two different apps.”
Over 214 charging sessions have dispensed approximately 5,000 kWh, with each session lasting an average of 28 minutes.
He explained that Cold Lake charges users 50 cents per minute, which is above the provincial average of 20 cents, but the income has not offset the costs.
"If the trend continues like that, we will be adding more to the pot to continue to provide this service."
Khan attributed the financial shortfall to high transmission and distribution fees.
Coun. Ryan Bailey expressed frustration over the inconsistent transmission and distribution fees, saying, "The math’s not mathing for me."
He pointed out that similar usage led to widely different T&D charges, with no clear explanation. For instance, in April, T&D fees were around $150, but in September, a slightly higher usage resulted in a $2,500 spike in distribution costs.
CAO Kevin Nagoya shared the City’s struggle to understand the billing formula, explaining, “Your T&D fees don't make this program feasible. And I said crassly to ATCO in this regard that it's not necessarily their fault because of the way the distribution system is.”
He went on to state that even if the meters were removed, blending T&D fees into other City utility costs would still lead to an indirect loss, which would complicate budgeting and transparency.
Khan mentioned the City’s current discussions with ATCO Electric and Alberta Municipalities to understand the discrepancy in fees and evaluate possible cost-saving measures. However, he noted that eliminating separate meters would mean forfeiting special EV rates.
Mayor Craig Copeland questioned whether Cold Lake might be unique in facing these challenges, asking, "As far as we know, we don't have any thoughts about putting these chargers anywhere else in the City. We just put them at the two spots.”
Nagoya confirmed, adding, “Right now, we've received a grant that covered most of the costs associated with the installation.”
The conversation ended with a consensus that further evaluation is essential to ensure Cold Lake’s EV chargers are economically viable. Administration plans to continue working with ATCO and other stakeholders to clarify billing details and explore ways to reduce operating costs.
In a public statement, Copeland acknowledged concerns about the unexpected costs, saying, “The math isn’t quite adding up, and we’ll need to decide whether to continue if this trend holds.”
Copeland explained that the City’s administration team would review the experiences of other municipalities, noting, “We can’t be the only community seeing this pattern.”
He emphasized that the initiative is still in the early stages, with only two chargers installed using federal grants.
“This is a learning process for us,” he added. “Starting small allows us to work out any issues and assess how far we can go with this.”
