Metal thieves seem to have found a new target of opportunity — the high-quality copper cables from electric vehicle charging stations.
Early on Tuesday morning, the chargers at the Port Moody Recreation Centre were hit.
“They were alerted by sensors in the area that went off, alerting them of the cables being cut,” Const. Sam Zacharias with the Port Moody Police Department said.
“Upon our arrival, there were no suspects on scene.”
Six BC Hydro fast chargers were damaged and BC Hydro says it is believed the thieves are targeting the copper inside them.
“Thieves gain a little bit of money from the copper,” Susie Rieder, a spokesperson with BC Hydro, said.
“It’s about 170 to 200 dollars, but you know, customers do face disruptions.”
BC Hydro says fast chargers are a more appealing target becuase their cables contain more copper than the Level 2 cables that are commonly used at homes and in some public charging stations.
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“They know what they’re doing, they know what they want, they’re using tools and they’re basically making off very quickly,” Zacharias said.
However, getting a charger back online is not as quick.
BC Hydro says it aims to have damaged stations back in service within 24 hours, but the repairs are costly.
The organization said that since October, there have been 44 fast charger cable thefts at 22 sites across B.C., with the cost to fix them adding up to about $1 million.
BC Hydro says it is bolstering security measures to help deter thieves.
“We’ve put in 22 additional cameras, enhanced lighting, (and) we’ve put in about 100 of these protective cable shields at some locations that will prevent the thefts,” Rieder said.
Zacharias added that they rely on the community to be their eyes and ears and prevent incidents like this from happening.
Investigators are now canvassing the area for surveillance video and asking anyone with information to come forward.
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