Industry and Technology Committee on Oct. 29th, 2025

[The Chair, Liberal, Ben Carr]

Good afternoon, everybody. Colleagues.

Okay, I know there are lots of side conversations. I appreciate we're always happy to see each other. We have a full couple of hours here and I'd very much like us to get going.

This is the second of the three scheduled meetings for our emergency study on the state of the auto sector with a variety of other specifics around that. We have one witness for the first hour, and several witnesses in the second hour.

We're going to get right into it here. All witnesses have completed the required connection tests in advance of this meeting.

I'll give you a friendly reminder that to protect the health and well-being of our interpreters if your interpretation device is plugged in and not on your ear to please make sure it is on the sticker in front of you.

With that, joining us online today we have Jeff Hines, who is representing Stellantis.

Mr. Hines, I believe you know you have up to five minutes to provide introductory remarks, followed by a line of questioning. There's an allotted amount of time to the recognized political parties around the table that we will follow.

Mr. Hines, the floor is yours.

[Jeff Hines, President, Stellantis]

Thank you very much.

Good afternoon, everyone. I want to take a few minutes for an opening statement.

Mr. Chair and honourable members of the committee, thanks again for the opportunity to appear before you today.

For a little background on Stellantis, we've been a proud part of Canada's automotive story for more than a century. This is in fact our 100-year anniversary here in Canada. We were born in Windsor on June 17, 1925, just 11 days after the Chrysler Corporation was formed in the U.S.

Since that time, our company and the variations of Stellantis have directly and indirectly created tens of thousands of jobs, supported the Canadian economy from coast to coast to coast and built innovative, dependable vehicles to keep Canadians moving every single day.

Since 2022 and more recently, we've announced $8.6 billion of Canadian-specific investments. Nearly all of those projects are either complete or well under way. They include the NextStar Energy battery facility in Windsor, major upgrades to the Windsor assembly plant, and enhanced R and D capacity as well, along with $1 billion earmarked for the Brampton assembly plant retool.

Today, Stellantis employs approximately 9,000 Canadians across our manufacturing plants, our research and development centre, and our business and distribution operations nationwide. Over the past 100 years, we've built more than 25 million vehicles in Canada and have sold them through a network of our more than 144 dealerships today.

We're also proud to be one of the only three automakers in Canada that build more vehicles in Canada than we sell here. That distinction reflects our deep commitment to this country and to its role in our North American manufacturing.

We've had strong productive relationships with our labour unions and all levels of government, and we're certainly grateful for that partnership and the support extended to us during pivotal moments in our history. That collaboration has been instrumental in ensuring that Canada remains a key part of Stellantis's global strategy.

For our dedicated employees and families in Brampton, I want to say this directly to you for those watching. The recent decisions on the Brampton plant were clearly not taken lightly, and we recognize the impact these decisions have had, not only on you but on the community and the families involved. We have robust supports in place to help mitigate the current situation and the effects, and we are offering transfer opportunities to other Stellantis facilities wherever possible and wherever that makes sense for the employees and their families.

Overall, our priority remains the same: long-term stability of our Canadian workforce. While the economic landscape has certainly changed and shifted and is certainly challenging today, the importance of Canada to Stellantis has not. We remain deeply invested in the future of Canadian manufacturing and innovation.

Since 2022, we've added 600 highly skilled engineering jobs at our research and development centre. By early 2026, we'll add approximately 1,500 new Canadian jobs to our Windsor assembly plant as well. At the same time, we continue to work constructively with our government partners, stakeholders and unions as we identify new opportunities for potential new products for Brampton.

As somebody said about the privilege of leading Stellantis Canada, I can tell you this: Our success as a company is tied directly to Canada's success. It's not just a market to us. It's a home. It's built by communities, it's built by our dealers and it's built by our employees and all the communities those folks represent, and they've represented us for generations.

The auto industry has faced challenges before and each time has adapted. It's persevered and it's emerged stronger. I'm confident that the Canadian auto-manufacturing business can do so once again.

In closing, Mr. Chair, I just want to emphasize three key points that I think are important as we move forward.

First, for more than a 100 years, Stellantis has helped shape Canada's automotive industry. That history gives us pride and it gives us purpose, and we want to look forward to the next chapter of building Canadian innovation, Canadian manufacturing and growth across Canada.

Second, with billions of dollars invested, thousands of new jobs under way and major projects that are nearing completion, we are committed to driving lasting economic value and reinforcing Canada's role in the global automotive supply chain.

Third and last, we remain fully engaged in working with government, with labour and with our community partners, working together to ensure a sustainable competitive future for Canadian manufacturing and, more importantly, the people who power it.

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I look forward to the committee's questions.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ben Carr]

Thank you very much.

Madam Dancho will begin for six minutes.

[Raquel Dancho, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Hines, for being with us today.

You are the president of Stellantis Canada, and you were invited to discuss the quite shocking news that Canada received just a few weeks ago. Your company is moving the facility for the production of the Jeep Compass to Illinois in the United States from Brampton. It laid off 3,000 workers and impacted 3,000 families there. In that announcement, your company announced a $13-billion investment in the United States that will create 5,000 direct jobs and countless more indirect American jobs.

It's very concerning, especially in light of the very considerable subsidy deals that you signed with the Liberal government, among others. I would like to ask you about those contracts, sir.

Just off the top, did any of these agreements that you signed with the Liberal government come with job guarantees that Stellantis would maintain its employment footprint in Canada?

[Jeff Hines]

What I can tell you is that we are committed to our employees at Brampton and in Canada.

Some of the dynamics of the contract and the contract signed are going to remain confidential, as is the nature of those contracts. We are, however, committed to maintaining the workforce in Canada as best we can.

[Raquel Dancho, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

Thank you, Mr. Hines.

I appreciate that, but I don't believe I'm asking you to reveal anything that's commercially sensitive. I'm just asking if you agreed to take up to—and I can break it down as well—about $16.5 billion in taxpayer money from agreements with the Liberal government in exchange for, among other things, a Canada-wide jobs guarantee. I don't believe that's commercially sensitive.

[Jeff Hines]

This is an important point for the committee. The plant is not closed. The workers remain laid off, and our commitment to those workers will remain. We are working through potential possibilities for that plant to get those workers back to work in a way that's commercially viable.

[Raquel Dancho, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

Thank you, Mr. Hines.

I do believe, from what we've understood from previous testimony on Monday, that while you are saying publicly that you do have plans, in fact they are contingent on Canada getting an auto sector deal. Unfortunately, we haven't had any commitment from the Liberal government that an auto deal is imminent or is forthcoming. Really, it just hasn't been communicated that it's something on the near horizon.

My understanding is that there are no plans for Brampton, unless there is an auto deal—a good auto deal—for Canada. Is that not the case?

[Jeff Hines]

Well, we certainly need some clarity from the trade situation that we have today. It's fluid. I just saw recent announcements over the last week. It's obviously a very fluid situation.

What we need, and what I think the industry needs, collectively, is clearly some stability in trade conversations so that we can adjust and invest accordingly.

[Raquel Dancho, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

Right.

Our understanding is that the Trump administration is very determined on these tariffs. In fact, they've stated this, and I'll paraphrase it. My take-away is that they're looking to bleed Canada's auto sector dry. We are bleeding a lot of auto jobs, and that seems to be their mission. Again, we aren't receiving any confidence from the Liberal government that they're going to deliver an auto deal for Canadians, imminently or on the near horizon.

All things being equal, if the situation you're in today remains the same a year from now, will that Brampton plant be operational?

[Jeff Hines]

I can't speculate on that hypothetical. We certainly want to work with both sides of the government to come to a solution that maintains jobs, and we want to do the best that we can to keep Canadian jobs, keep Canadian manufacturing and keep our folks at Brampton working with a long-term, sustainable operation. We certainly want that.

[Raquel Dancho, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

Thank you, Mr. Hines.

I'm just going to run through some of the funding commitments that came from the Liberal government, which you are currently receiving.

Over the past three years, Stellantis has received deals worth about $1 billion in direct capital grants to modernize and to retool your Windsor and Brampton facilities for electric and hybrid vehicles production. There was $529 million of that commitment from the federal government's strategic innovation fund. To my knowledge, over $105 million has already flowed to your company.

Further to that, the Liberal government also committed to provide you with support of up to $500 million, through the SIF as well, for capital expenditures for your NextStar Energy battery plant in Windsor, and $268 million of that has flowed to you.

Within those agreements—and I'll ask you again—was there a Canada-wide jobs guarantee?

[Jeff Hines]

There certainly was every effort made to make sure that all of those investments are working.

I'll just go back to what I said originally. We have over 1,000 jobs at our NextStar Energy plant. We have added, or are in the process of adding, 1,500 additional jobs in Windsor.

The folks at Brampton remain as part of our employment, as employees. We want to continue that. That's what we're trying to do.

We certainly want to work with our union colleagues and with the government to make sure we can do that.

[Raquel Dancho, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

Thank you.

I'll ask you again about the NextStar Energy plant and the other subsidy agreement that came from the Liberal government in partnership with the Government of Ontario. That was to be up to $15 billion. In that agreement, was there a Canada-wide jobs guarantee? I'm pretty keen on this, so I'll ask you again.

[Jeff Hines]

I would reiterate that we continue to have employment there. It's 1,000 employees today, with plans to add additional workers as the plant expands and the volume of what we do at that plant expands. We certainly have employees there today and more to come.

[Raquel Dancho, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

Thank you, Mr. Hines.

I am a bit concerned because—again, I don't believe it is commercially sensitive information as to whether or not you've committed with up to $16.5 billion of taxpayer funding and subsidies from the Liberal government and others.... I don't believe it's commercially sensitive to ask and for you to say whether, within any of those multiple agreements, the Liberal government required a Canada-wide jobs guarantee in exchange for that considerable level of taxpayer funding. I am concerned that you're not saying so, which, to me, seems like there wasn't.

[Jeff Hines]

We continue to have jobs, and we expand that plant. We continue to expand at our Windsor plant as well. We certainly appreciate all the support we've gotten from both the provincial and federal governments. Certainly, this is also an unusual time, over the last nine months especially. It's certainly more fluid than any of us expected when those contracts were completed.

[Raquel Dancho, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

Thank you, Mr. Hines.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ben Carr]

Thank you, Madam Dancho.

Madam O'Rourke, you have six minutes.

[Dominique O'Rourke, Liberal, Guelph, ON]

Thank you, Chair Carr.

Mr. Hines, I certainly hope you're able to keep the commitments you made in your opening statements for Canada and to the auto workers.

You understand, at this really challenging time, when the government is standing with our auto sector and standing with our auto workers, that news that you are moving the Jeep Compass plant from Brampton to Illinois and making substantial investments in the United States is really challenging as we try to fortify our auto sector in light of these unjustified and punishing U.S. tariffs.

I'm going to suggest, sir, that Stellantis's actions are contributing to this instability. I'm going to assume that you don't treat all your contractual obligations this way, despite market changes. A contract is a contract.

You, sir, are on the hook for millions of dollars, and I'd like to know how this is affecting your business decisions.

[Jeff Hines]

There are a few things I would say there. It's a lot to digest.

Number one is that we would like to get to some clarity on the current economic and trade situation. As you can imagine, it's not a Stellantis-only problem and maybe not an auto-industry-only problem. It's extremely difficult to make investment decisions given the current environment that we're all living in today.

The first thing we'd like to get to is some level of clarity, whether that's through CUSMA or something that's going to get us to some level of understanding of what the current trade environment is going to be, so that we can make the right investment decisions and get back on track here in Canada.

[Dominique O'Rourke, Liberal, Guelph, ON]

That's certainly the objective of the Government of Canada as well. I'm sure you would agree that we want to work with our industry partners and the auto workers to reach that stability, and that every effort is being made to do that.

I want to shift to Brampton for a moment. While the addition of the third shift in Brampton doesn't really release you from any of the contractual obligations, it is welcome. I would be curious to know what the plans are for Brampton.

[Jeff Hines]

The plans for Brampton, as you can imagine, are a little commercially sensitive. They're something we're not going to discuss publicly. I can tell you that I've seen a couple of different potential options for the plant in Brampton. I think they both make sense for Canada. We look forward to when we get some stability in the current environment. I think it could do good things for the plant and good things for our customers across Canada.

[Dominique O'Rourke, Liberal, Guelph, ON]

I am curious to know whether or not you worked with the government prior to making this announcement and whether there was consultation with Unifor or the auto workers. How did you arrive at this surprising conclusion?

[Jeff Hines]

We've had consistent conversation with a lot of stakeholders over the past nine months. Certainly, as some of the communication has gone, some was commercially sensitive, which we were unable to share. Some we did share. We have had communication with all levels of government, especially over the last nine months.

I would say that some of our challenge was with the direct conversation we had with our Brampton workforce. It's a difficult message to deliver, and I'm sure it was even harder to receive when we made that announcement a few weeks back. There is a lot of empathy for our workers in that situation, but we did have numerous conversations through all levels of government over the last six to nine months.