Confidential government agreements worth billions of dollars to support a Stellantis-backed electric vehicle battery plant in Windsor, Ontario, include numerous conditions that grant federal officials the authority to terminate the contracts and potentially demand repayment if breached, as per documents obtained by CBC Windsor. The full terms of the contracts remain partly undisclosed due to redactions, raising uncertainties about guarantees related to the company’s presence in Canada claimed by elected officials.
The contracts have faced parliamentary scrutiny following Stellantis’ decision to relocate production of a Jeep model from Brampton, Ontario, to Illinois and invest $13 billion in U.S. operations. Concerns have arisen about potential job losses for the approximately 3,000 workers at the Brampton plant, particularly amid ongoing challenges in the Canadian auto industry due to U.S. tariffs.
The federal government and NextStar have not responded to queries before the article’s publication. Copies of the previously unreleased contracts were found by CBC Windsor within over 150 pages of government records released by the Privy Council Office in August, obtained through an access to information request.
One agreement from 2022 between the federal government and NextStar Energy involves up to $500 million in taxpayer support through the Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF). NextStar, a joint venture of Stellantis and LG Energy Solution, embarked on the project in Windsor the same year. The second deal in 2023, a Special Contribution Agreement, includes up to $15 billion in production subsidies, with one-third funded by the province.
The agreements contain various conditions, including job creation targets, ownership maintenance of the Windsor plant, and undisclosed capital expenditures in Canada. The contracts outline potential default events and resolution procedures, allowing the minister to terminate the agreements if necessary. The federal deals also emphasize the importance of suppliers setting up operations in Canada and obtaining consent before ownership changes.
The government has refrained from disclosing the total funding provided to NextStar, but it had disbursed $268 million of the $500 million SIF allocation by the previous year. Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne hinted at the government’s intention to enforce contractual rights, potentially including seeking repayment from Stellantis under various agreements.
The contracts have attracted parliamentary attention previously, with committees requesting copies to investigate their terms. Recently, another committee has demanded access to the agreements, setting a two-week deadline for the government to furnish them.