Industry minister terminates resolution talks with Stellantis over Brampton auto plant sale

Industry Minister Mélanie Joly has written the CEO of Stellantis Canada saying the government is terminating a resolution process and notifying the automaker that it is in default of a 2022 funding agreement after the company announced its intentions to sell its Brampton, Ont., plant to an armoured vehicle manufacturer.

Joly meets with reps from company, union and Ontario government on Thursday

Darren Major · CBC News

· Posted: Nov 12, 2026 4:00 PM EST | Last Updated: 1 minute ago

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Industry Minister Mélanie Joly has written the CEO of Stellantis Canada saying the government is terminating a resolution process and notifying the automaker that it is in default of a 2022 funding agreement after the company announced its intentions to sell its Brampton, Ont., plant to an armoured vehicle manufacturer.

Stellantis had been engaged with the government to find a possible alternative for the Brampton facility after the company announced last year that it wouldn't be going ahead with plans to build the Jeep Compass at that plant.

The government had signed an agreement to provide subsidies to the automaker to retool the plant to produce the Jeep model. Joly's letter says the company is in violation of that 2022 agreement and that the planned sale to Roshel Inc. indicates Stellantis is not interested in finding a satisfactory solution.

"I must conclude that Stellantis is no longer diligently working in good faith to prepare a satisfactory plan under the Resolution Process. Accordingly, the Resolution Process is terminated," the letter reads.

Stellantis and Roshel signed a memorandum of understanding regarding the potential sale in September. The automaker announced on Monday that it intends to go ahead with the sale.

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On Tuesday, Prime Minister Mark Carney called Stellantis' now-confirmed plans to sell an automotive assembly plant in Brampton, Ont., "a betrayal." But a previously obtained copy of the multi-million-dollar funding deal between Stellantis and the federal government suggests the carmaker had a way out when it came to closing the Brampton plant. The CBC's Emma Loop explains.

More than 2,000 workers at Stellantis's Brampton plant have been out of work since the company halted operations in 2023 to retool the facility for the Jeep Compass.

In the deal announced by the Trudeau government in 2022, Ottawa said it would inject up to $529 million in Stellantis plants in Brampton and Windsor, Ont., to help them retool to increase production of electric and gas-powered vehicles.

Stellantis paused the retooling plan at the Brampton plant in early 2025, announcing in October of that year that the Jeep Compass would be built at the Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois instead.

Part of the deal with Roshel that was announced on Monday could see Stellantis lease some of the property back.

Stellantis says there are still about 1,800 workers from the Brampton plant on layoff. Since 2023, those workers have continued to receive 70 per cent of their pay, as well as benefits.

Joly's letter to Stellantis suggests that the government could seek to terminate the 2022 agreement and recoup the subsidies the government gave the automaker.

WATCH | Carney clarifies stance on Stellantis plant deal:

'What was the betrayal?' Carney clarifies stance on Stellantis plant deal

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Prime Minister Mark Carney, speaking from Dublin on Nov. 12, was asked what he meant when he called the planned sale of the idled Brampton, Ont., Stellantis plant to an armoured vehicle maker a 'betrayal' of workers. 'A partial solution is a step, it is not a global solution,' he said, adding that is a 'betrayal.'

After announcing the planned sale, Stellantis issued a statement on Tuesday, saying it would voluntarily pay the government subsidies back, which amount to at least $220 million. The company also said it will work with the union "toward a fair outcome" for the workers.

Last week, Unifor, the union representing the workers at the plant, demanded a meeting of all stakeholders, including the Ontario government, Stellantis and the federal government. Joly is attending that meeting in Toronto on the federal government's behalf in an attempt to find a way forward for laid-off Stellantis workers.

Prime Minister Mark Carney said Thursday that his government had been informed of "some aspects" of Stellantis's plan to sell the auto plant to Roshel before the deal was announced earlier this week.

The prime minister made the comments a day after reports that his office and Industry Minister Mélanie Joly's office had been aware for months of the details of what was going to be made public.

Joly's office has insisted that the minister "had no part in negotiating the deal with Stellantis or Roshel" and didn't meet with the armoured vehicle manufacturer.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has called on Carney to remove Joly as minister over the plant sale. He reiterated that call on Thursday and said all the details of the 2022 agreement should be made public.

"Why not release the deal, Mr. Carney? Your government handed over our money. Canadians deserve to know how much they paid and what they got in return," he said during a news conference in Calgary.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Darren Major is a senior writer for CBC's parliamentary bureau in Ottawa. He previously worked as a digital reporter for CBC Ottawa and a producer for CBC's Power & Politics. He holds a master's degree in journalism and a bachelor's degree in public affairs and policy management, both from Carleton University. He also holds a master's degree in arts from Queen's University. He can be reached at darren.major@cbc.ca.