Our last stop: Specialty EVs for the mining industry

This Matters is pleased to publish episodes of the Toronto Star's podcast, "Road Trip: Electric Avenues," every Saturday. This week, we are proud to share the final episode in the series: When we started this podcast, we really wanted to visit each step of the EV production process to show a complete picture of the supply chain, but in the end, we couldn't seal the deal. First off, the cam and cathode production isn't coming to Ontario. Right now, it's all being built in Bécancour, Quebec. And while there are plans to retool auto assembly plants to make EVs, there's currently only one that's operational — the GM electric delivery van plant in Ingersoll — and when we asked to visit, we found out it had been shut down due to supply chain snags. So instead, our final stop is North Bay where they are making specialty EVs for the mining industry. Toronto Star photographer Steve Russell and climate change reporter Marco Chown Oved went on a road trip through northern Ontario in the dead of winter. It was cold, blizzarding and icy. They travelled 2,300 km during the coldest week of the year. And they did it in an electric vehicle (EV).