Poilievre demands federal government release its contracts with Stellantis

The conservativist company of Canada is calling on the union soldier authorities to in public release its contracts with Stellantis following the company’s announcement Tuesday that it is scrapping plans to produce the Jeep Compass in Brampton, Ont., and going with a U.S. Plant instead.

The demand was made in a letter sent on Friday to Prime Minister Mark Carney by the leader of the official opposition, Pierre Poilievre.

“You claimed yesterday that Stellantis is obligated to keep jobs in Brampton, yet auto workers have been left in the dark about what Canadians got for the $10 billion your government promised to that company,” Poilievre wrote in the letter.

In 2023, Nextstar Energy, a joint venture between Stellantis and LG, reached a deal with the federal and Ontario governments for its $5-billion dollar electric vehicle battery plant in Windsor, Ont. Under the terms of the deal, Stellantis would receive up to $15 billion in performance incentives over a 10-year period, with two-thirds being funded by the federal government.

The incentives were slated to be provided on a per unit production basis, with a cap of $45 US per kilowatt hour (kWh). The deal included the condition that incentives will only be given for batteries the company produces and sells.

A prior deal was inked the year before between Stellantis and the two governments that would provide $3.6 billion towards upgrades at the company’s Brampton and Windsor assembly plants to support electric vehicle and battery production. At a press conference in Kenora, Ont., on Wednesday, Ontario premier Doug Ford said the provincial government had not “given them a penny for Brampton yet.”

Poilievre went on to say Canadians deserve to know which protections for Canadian auto workers were, or were not, secured within the government’s contracts with Stellantis.

The federal Conservative leader’s letter follows an announcement Thursday that he will make a formal request on Monday to the Speaker of the House of Commons for an emergency debate regarding the current situation of Canada’s automotive sector.

Ottawa threatens to sue Stellantis for moving Jeep production to U.S.

On Wednesday, Industry Minister Melanie Joly wrote to Stellantis’ CEO, Anthony Filosa, threatening legal action if the company fails to uphold its obligations to Canadians.

Amongst the terms of the government’s deal was the condition that Stellantis would maintain its "full Canadian footprint, including Brampton," Joly wrote.

Before shutting down in 2023 to retool for the production of the Jeep Compass, Stellantis’ Brampton plant employed roughly 3,000 people. The retooling of the facility was put on hold in February, with the company announcing it was reassessing its product strategy after U.S. President Donald Trump issued tariffs on Canada’s auto sector.

Stellantis said this week it still has plans for the Brampton plant, but would not disclose them until after meeting with the federal government. At a press conference Wednesday, Joly said the government has been engaging with the company for months “knowing that the Brampton facility was going to be retooled.”

On Thursday, Carney told reporters in Toronto that the global head of Stellantis had assured him the company is looking at finding a new vehicle to produce at the Brampton plant.

According to the government spokesperson, disclosing funding amounts for individual battery companies' production support would pose a risk to Canada regarding its contractual and commercial obligations, and harm the companies' competitive position through the disclosure of production levels.

Journalist

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