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Bill Wardell takes the sunshine express to work.

Wardell is among a small but growing number of converts in the Saskatoon region to embrace electric vehicles. He charges his Chevrolet Volt using solar panels installed on his farm just south of the city.

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“We’re really driving on pure sunshine,” he said in an interview this week.

Wardell, a lawyer, and his wife drive to work in Saskatoon, so it’s not like they’re occasional motorists who don’t need to rely on their vehicle.

Concern over diminished battery capacity in the bitter cold of a Saskatchewan winter are overblown, he said.

“You’ve got to be a little careful.”

His his overall experience with the car has been “just fantastic,” he said. “I’m an unabashed advocate of solar power and electric vehicles. I don’t know why we’re all not driving them.”

If Kent Rathwell has anything to say about it, all drivers will go electric soon. He’s president of Sun Country Highway of Saskatoon, which offers a charging network and sells electric vehicle equipment. His company is partnering with other groups and the City of Saskatoon to take the next step toward powering electric vehicles with clean energy.