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The federal government is escalating its fight with auto giant Stellantis over the company’s decision to move some of its production to the United States, despite receiving hundreds of millions of dollars in incentives to Canadian taxpayers in recent years.
Minister of Industry Minister MmyLanie Joly said Thursday that the government will serve Stellantis with a notice of default under financing contracts related to projects in both Windsor and Brampton, Ont.
The move, which Joly announced while speaking to the House of Commons international trade committee, comes amid fallout from Stellantis’ revelation in October that it is scrapping plans to build a Jeep model at its Brampton plant, leaving the roughly 3,000 workers there without a vehicle to build, at least for now.
“When it comes to protecting auto jobs, we will not let these industries down,” Joly said in his opening remarks. “We will stand firm for the sake of our workers, our industries and our nation because defending these jobs means defending Canada’s economic backbone and the livelihoods of countless families.”
Last month, Joly said the government had initiated a formal dispute resolution process with Stellantis as a result of the company’s decision.
Stellantis has received at least $222 million under the deal to redevelop the Brampton and Windsor plants. NextStar Energy, a joint venture between Stellantis and South Korean battery company LG Energy Solution, has also received more than $530 million in federal funding in recent years.
Joly has maintained that those contracts included labor guarantees for Brampton, but not all agreements have been made public.
Stellantis has insisted it has not closed the Brampton plant and is working with the government and other partners.”to find viable solutions” for installation.
In a separate parliamentary hearing on Thursday, a Stellantis executive said she was not aware of Joly’s announcement. “We do not agree that we are breaching the contract” saying Teresa Piruzza, director of foreign affairs and public policies at FCA Canada Inc., the Canadian arm of Stellantis.
More to come.
