Toronto (AP) – Honda Canada will postpone a CAD$15 billion (CAD$1.7 billion) investment in Canada's most populous province, including a proposed EV battery factory and a renovated vehicle assembly facility.
Honda announced about a roughly two-year investment in Ontario’s integrated value chain investment project due to the recent slowdown in the electric vehicle market.
“As market conditions change, the company will continue to evaluate the time and progress of the project,” Chiu said in a statement.
He added that the decision had no impact on current employment at the Honda manufacturing plant in Aliston, Ontario.
Honda's electric vehicle project in Canada includes a heavy assembly plant, a close-range electric vehicle battery plant, and two key battery parts facilities located elsewhere in Ontario.
The project is expected to see 1,000 jobs created by the two major factories, in addition to retaining the 4,200 existing jobs at the assembly plant.
According to the original plan, the plant will produce up to 240,000 cars per year when it is fully operational in 2028.
Ottawa will give Japanese automakers about CAD 2.5 billion (CAD 1.8 billion) through tax credits, while Ontario promises to provide up to CAD 2.5 billion (CAD 1.8 billion) directly and indirectly.
“Everyone is in the market cooling consequences of U.S. tariff actions, including Honda,” Flavio Volpe, president of the Auto Parts Manufacturers Association, posted on social media.
