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CTV News
04-07-2025
- Automotive
- CTV News
What could a scrapped EV mandate mean for Windsor's NextStar battery plant?
A truck seen leaving NextStar Battery Plant in Windsor, Ont. on July 4, 2025. (Robert Lothian/CTV News Windsor) The potential scrapping of Canada's electric vehicle mandate could create more uncertainty in the short term for Windsor's NextStar Energy electric vehicle battery plant. Earlier this week, automotive leaders asked the federal government to scrap its electric vehicle sales mandate. 'Now, what's changed since it was designed and came into force is that we've had this collapse in EV sales,' Brian Kingston, the CEO of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association, said after a meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney on Wednesday. The meeting included the CEOs of Ford Canada, Stellantis Canada, and GM Canada. Greg Layson, the Digital and Mobile Editor for Automotive News Canada, told CTV News the targets were always 'ambitious.' 'With no zero emissions vehicle purchase incentives, it becomes more difficult to meet those targets from the government standpoint,' Layson said. Potentially lowered EV production creates another hurdle to overcome for the NextStar battery plant. Production of battery cells has been expected to begin at the plant later this year. NextStar Battery Plant NextStar Battery Plant seen in Windsor, Ont. on July 4, 2025. (Robert Lothian/CTV News Windsor) 'We were never going to see three shifts of production at the battery plant on day one,' Layson said. 'We weren't even going to see two shifts of production on day one. It was going to be a long, slow process. It might just be a longer, slower process.' Previous estimates expected the battery plant to create about 2,500 jobs when fully operational. NextStar Energy declined to comment on potential changes to the vehicle mandate. In a previous unrelated inquiry last week, the battery manufacturer noted about 850 employees have been hired so far. 'We're not going to hire 2,500 workers overnight to fill this place. They're going to hire shift at a time, fill what they need, work when they need to,' Layson added. Under the EV sales mandate, 20 per cent of all new light-duty vehicles sold in Canada must be zero-emission as of next year. The target rises annually to 100 per cent by 2035. Layson believes Canada could loosen the mandates and 'spread' out the targets. He's optimistic the plant will play a key role in the EV sector when consumers transition, but it could take longer than expected. The automotive journalist added the industry will need better infrastructure and more competitive pricing to see demand take off. 'When sales fall, production falls, and when production falls, batteries aren't needed,' he noted. -With files from the Canadian Press.
Global News
04-07-2025
- Automotive
- Global News
Automakers ‘cautiously optimistic' after meeting Carney over EV mandates
The head of an organization representing automakers said he's 'cautiously optimistic' after meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney to urge him to repeal the electric vehicle sales mandate. Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association CEO Brian Kingston joined the CEOs of Ford Canada, Stellantis Canada and GM Canada in a meeting with the prime minister on Wednesday in Ottawa. Along with discussing the impact of U.S. tariffs — the primary focus of the meeting — the automakers told Carney there's no way the industry can meet the targets set out in the EV mandate. The industry has long argued the mandate is unnecessary since Canada already has other policies to meet its emissions-reduction targets. 'Why would you put an EV mandate on top of your existing (greenhouse gas) regulations? It makes absolutely no sense,' Kingston told The Canadian Press. Story continues below advertisement 'Now, what's changed since it was designed and came into force is that we've had this collapse in EV sales.' 4:09 Trump reverses California EV mandate, says 100% electric cars would be a 'disaster for the country' The EV sales mandate requires that 20 per cent of all new light-duty vehicles sold in Canada next year be zero-emission. The target rises annually to 100 per cent by 2035. The most recent data from Statistics Canada shows EVs accounted for just 7.53 per cent of all new vehicles sold in Canada in April. EV sales peaked at 18.29 per cent in December, the last month before funding ran out of the popular Zero-Emission Vehicles rebate program. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Known as iZev, the rebates offered up to $5,000 off the cost of a new electric vehicle, but the program was suspended in January and that month sales dipped to 11.95 per cent. Story continues below advertisement Sales further fell to 6.8 per cent in February with the loss of the federal rebate program, and 6.53 per cent in March. They climbed slightly in April after Quebec reintroduced its own provincial rebate, which will be gradually phased out by January 2027. 'If we are going to hit the 2026 mandated target of 20 per cent EV sales, you would have to grow ZEV sales by 180,000 units,' Kingston said. 'There is simply no way that that can occur on such a short timeline, given all of the current market forces at play.' 2:24 BIV: EV sales in Canada plummet over last year While the government has indicated it plans to bring back some form of consumer rebate for electric vehicles, Kingston said making such a promise without a firm timeline for implementation promises to undermine EV sales even further. Story continues below advertisement Industry Minister Mélanie Joly said in May the government was looking at bringing back 'support programs' for EVs. Last month, Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin told The Canadian Press that Ottawa is working on bringing back a rebate program. The Liberal party's election platform promised to look at ways to 'reintroduce a purchase incentive worth up to $5,000.' 'Comments from ministers in the public suggesting that an EV incentive is coming back are extremely damaging,' Kingston said. 'If the government is going to bring it back, they've got to be clear about that with the plan and the timeline. And it has to be quick because if you tell people it's going to be in three months, then no one will purchase an EV for the next three months.' 5:14 Why EV Sales are suddenly slowing down Transport Canada is holding consultations on the rebate program. Hyundai Canada CEO Steve Flamand, who has called for the rebate to return, is meeting with department officials to discuss it next week. Story continues below advertisement 'For us, the program worked quite well,' Flamand told The Canadian Press. He added the sudden end of the iZEV program disrupted his company's supply chains. 'Obviously, it needs to be predictable, it needs to be stable, because our business does not shift in a matter of a couple of days,' he said. 'It pivots in a matter of six-month tranches.' Flamand said his company isn't opposed to the EV mandate, as long as it aligns with market demand. 'We believe in the cause, but right now I think 20 per cent… it's just not realistic. Nobody's going to do that,' he said. 'So having an unrealistic mandate without the natural market demand for it is a recipe for a disaster.' Kingston said bringing back the rebate program wouldn't be enough on its own to meet the EV mandate. 'Just to give you a sense of what the cost would be if you were to try and put in place a $5,000 incentive and increase sales by an additional 180,000 vehicles to meet the 2026 target, you'd be talking about nearly a billion dollars in spending,' he said. 'That is not a sustainable policy.' The government spent nearly $3 billion in five years on its EV rebates program.
Toronto Star
03-07-2025
- Automotive
- Toronto Star
Carney meets with automotive sector CEOs as U.S. trade talks continue
OTTAWA - Prime Minister Mark Carney met with automotive sector CEOs Wednesday morning to discuss U.S. tariffs and ways to protect Canadian supply chains from the trade war with the United States. A spokeswoman for the Prime Minister's Office said the CEOs of Ford Canada, Stellantis Canada and GM Canada met with Carney, along with Brian Kingston of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association.
CBC
02-07-2025
- Automotive
- CBC
Carney meets with car industry CEOs as U.S. trade talks continue
Social Sharing Prime Minister Mark Carney met with automotive sector CEOs Wednesday morning to discuss U.S. tariffs and ways to protect Canadian supply chains from the trade war with the United States. A spokesperson for the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said the CEOs of Ford Canada, Stellantis Canada and GM Canada met with Carney, along with Brian Kingston of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers' Association. A brief readout from the PMO said the group discussed "the need to build up a made-in-Canada supply chain as well as diversify our trading partners." U.S. President Donald Trump has said repeatedly that the U.S. does not need Canadian cars and he wants to see automotive companies move all production to the U.S. The U.S. has imposed 25 per cent tariffs on vehicles manufactured in Canada, with a carve-out for components built in the U.S. through the highly integrated vehicle supply chain. "I think it's good and useful for the prime minister to be meeting with the Detroit-based automakers. I think we're also hopeful that we're going to have an opportunity to meet with the prime minister as well," said David Adams, president and CEO of the Global Automakers of Canada, which represents 26 European and Asian auto brands including Toyota and Honda. Adams said one key issue for automakers is the government's zero-emission vehicle mandate, which is set to kick in next year and was the target of recent Conservative attacks in the House of Commons. Canada's auto manufacturers have called on the government to repeal the mandate. Kingston told CBC News that he intended to raise the issue with the prime minister. "The EV mandate itself is not sustainable. The targets that have been established cannot be met," Kingston said on his way into the meeting. Conservative MP and industry critic Raquel Dancho echoed the industry's call for a repeal of the mandate. "I think it's very irresponsible and unfortunately quite in line with the lack of serious action that is needed at this time, more than ever, from the Liberals," Dancho told CBC News. "It is my hope and expectation that they will see the light." EV sales drop after rebates run out Electric vehicles remain more expensive than their gas-powered equivalents, and sales fell in the winter after the $5,000 federal vehicle rebates ran out of funding. Between January and March, zero-emission vehicles made up only 8.11 per cent of all new vehicle sales in Canada — a drop from the 16.5 per cent recorded in the fourth quarter of 2024 — Statistics Canada data shows. The monthly share of new vehicle sales going to EVs never dropped below 10.65 per cent in 2024 and peaked at 18.29 per cent in December. In April — the most recent Statistics Canada data available — EV sales dropped to 7.53 per cent of all new vehicle sales in Canada. Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin confirmed last month the government was working to bring back an EV rebate of some kind, but wasn't sure yet if it would restore the old program or be something new. The government's EV sales mandate states that at least 20 per cent of new light-duty vehicles offered for sale in 2026 must be zero-emission. That share is supposed to rise each year until it reaches 100 per cent in 2035. "There's no way that manufacturers are going to be able to meet their targets for 2026," Adams said. He said the targets are "costly and problematic," and their removal would allow Canada's auto industry to better focus on the trade relationship with the U.S. Adams thinks Carney could be sympathetic to that argument. "My sense of the prime minister is that he's a pretty pragmatic person," he said. Canada and the U.S. are back at the bargaining table after Trump called a halt to trade talks over Canada's plan to impose a digital services tax on major tech firms — a plan the Carney government called off Sunday evening.
