Feds, Ontario ante up nearly $600M to produce electric vehicles at Ford’s Oakville plant
Posted October 8, 2020 6:34 am.
Last Updated October 8, 2020 1:34 pm.
The federal and Ontario governments are each chipping in $295 million to mass produce electric vehicles – and the batteries that power them – at Ford Motor Co.’s plant in Oakville.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Ontario Premier Doug Ford lauded the announcement on Thursday morning.
“By making this investment in Ford Canada, we are ensuring our province continues to lead North America and the world in automotive manufacturing and innovation, while boosting our competitiveness in this key sector,” said Ford.
“We are also securing thousands of good-paying jobs, not just at the facility in Oakville, but across the province. This project will help support our auto parts sector and other suppliers and service providers.”
Trudeau called the announcement a “testament to Canada’s attractiveness as a destination for clean technology, talent, and infrastructure in the automotive industry.”
“Companies like Ford are helping accelerate our transition to a low-carbon, clean-growth economy, which will help protect our environment, drive innovation, and create many good middle-class jobs.”
The money is part of a three-year agreement worth nearly $2 billion that was announced last month between the automaker and Unifor, the union that represents autoworkers in Canada.
Watch the full announcement below
The Oakville plant employs 3,400 Ford workers and Jerry Dias, National President of Unifor, has said retooling the plant to produce electric vehicles will save 3,000 of those jobs.
From the Liberal government’s perspective, the investment will not only help secure good-paying jobs in the struggling auto sector. It hopes it will give Canada an edge in the global competition to meet what’s expected to be explosive demand for electric vehicles in the near future.
The investment is also part of the government’s commitment to invest in the transition to a clean, renewable-energy economy, with the goal of reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
It has already committed more than $300 million to create a network of fast-charging stations for electric vehicles across the country. And it is providing incentives of up to $5,000 off the price of purchasing or leasing electric and hybrid vehicles.
The federal government also hopes the new investment will help boost home-grown mining companies that produce the nickel and other metals used to make the batteries for electric vehicles.
