As Canada pursues Stellantis and General Motors over significant job cuts in the country, it's hoping to recover hundreds of millions of dollars in incentive funding. Industry Minister Mélanie Joly confirmed that Canada will seek to get back CA$260 million from GM tied to its Canadian operations, while also exploring recovery options for the nearly CA$1 billion provided to Stellantis.
The automaker had announced plans to move Jeep Compass production from Brampton, Ontario, to a plant in Illinois. Despite this investment, talks between Canadian government officials and Stellantis have been ongoing since November, focusing on how and when the company might repay public funds.
The federal government is also eyeing repayment from GM, which recently scaled back operations in Ontario. Ottawa will seek to recover a portion of the CA$260 million granted to keep GM's operations going.
However, recovering the money could be difficult due to the structure of the loans and payouts. Canada is looking to the future, hoping that a new trade deal with China could encourage Chinese brands to build cars locally, while also convincing Hyundai and VW to do the same.
With significant job cuts and production moves, the Canadian government's efforts to recover funding are a key focus for the industry.
It's not surprising that Canada is taking aggressive action to recover its investment in Stellantis and GM, given the significant impact of these job cuts on local communities. The government has a responsibility to ensure that public funds are used effectively and efficiently.
