North Bay college opens new zero-emission training centre in its auto shop

Almost silently, Nipissing MPP Vic Fedeli and Canadore College president George Burton cruised into the college’s new Zero Emission Training Centre Friday at the college's Motive Power Shop in an electric car.

"They’re not only more efficient but it does our job to reduce our carbon footprint,” said Burton.

“This is the next generation.”

The training centre is part of the college's plan to be an innovator in electric vehicle manufacturing and training. The Ontario government is providing more than $330,000.

"They're showing the rest of the colleges the way forward that you need to be where the puck is headed and that's where Canadore is,” said Fedeli.

“We’re teaching young men and women how to fix an electric vehicle.”

Canadore currently delivers training in motive power programs using conventional internal combustion engines. As Ontario transitions away from fossil fuels, the new training centre will offer students access to technologies that include working with electric vehicles, battery electric recreational vehicles and yard tools.

"This is giving the students the skills when we're all buying our electrical vehicle that we can go to the service centre and get them serviced properly," said Burton.

He said the centre will help attract more students to the trades “to upgrade the skills of Ontario’s skilled trades’ workforce and facilitate collaboration with industry to identify new and emerging training needs.”

One-fifth of all passenger cars, SUVs and trucks sold in Canada in 2026 will need to run on electricity under new regulations made by the federal government.

The goal is to gradually force car manufacturers to go electric. By 2030, 60 per cent of all vehicle sales will be electric and by 2035 every passenger vehicle sold in Canada will have moved away from gas power.

Almost silently, Nipissing MPP Vic Fedeli and Canadore College president George Burton cruised into the college’s new Zero Emission Training Centre Friday at the college's Motive Power Shop in an electric car. (Eric Taschner/CTV News)

Car companies promise their electric vehicles will work in the harsh northern Ontario winter weather.

"The cost will come down and that’s why there’s a phase-in. These multi-national, multi-billion dollar automotive companies do their marketing to show that electric vehicles can tolerate the northern climate,” said Fedeli.

“Over the last two and a half years, Ontario has attracted $25 billion in investments by global automakers and suppliers of electric vehicle batteries and battery materials.”

Fedeli said the next step will be to continue to spend more on vehicle charging stations to meet the need when more of the cars eventually are on the road.

“We have $91 million worth of new charging stations that we’re putting in along the highway system,” he said.

“We’ve seen around 2,500 charging stations installed by both Hydro One and OPG, Ontario Power Generation. There’s always more to be done.”

The facility opened earlier during this past school year. The college will begin offering zero-emission training in the fall.