{"id":29484,"date":"2022-08-17T14:45:40","date_gmt":"2022-08-17T18:45:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/?p=29484"},"modified":"2022-08-17T14:45:40","modified_gmt":"2022-08-17T18:45:40","slug":"tesla-meets-canadian-minister-of-industry-gigafactory-canada","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/?p=29484","title":{"rendered":"Tesla meets with Canadian minister of industry amid effort for Gigafactory in Canada"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tesla has met with Fran\u00e7ois-Philippe Champagne, Canada\u2019s federal minister in charge of innovation, science, and industry, as the automaker is considering a Gigafactory in Canada.<\/p>\n

We have been reporting on evidence that Tesla has been looking at a potential factory in Canada. <\/p>\n

In June,\u00a0Electrek<\/em>\u00a0obtained a recording of a companywide meeting held by Musk<\/a>,\u00a0during which he confirmed that Tesla is looking at sites in North America, and the CEO hinted at Canada. Musk\u00a0did it again<\/a>\u00a0at Tesla\u2019s annual shareholders\u2019 meeting earlier this month, and the effort was confirmed through a lobbying disclosure by the automaker with the Ontario government<\/a> in Canada.<\/p>\n

Now we learn that Fran\u00e7ois-Philippe Champagne has met with Tesla Canada at their Markham facility.<\/p>\n

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There\u2019s a part of \ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6 in every @Tesla<\/a> that you see on the roads and today I had a chance to visit their facility in Markham for a tour and test drive.<\/p>\n

I look forward to seeing Canada continue to be the green supplier of choice for the automotive industry. pic.twitter.com\/bIEWceRa8h<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Fran\u00e7ois-Philippe Champagne (FPC) \ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6 (@FP_Champagne) August 17, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

In Markham, Tesla operates its Tesla Toronto Automation group, which it built out of its acquisition of the manufacturing equipment maker Hibar Systems<\/a>. The group makes machinery that goes on production lines at Tesla\u2019s factories around the world.<\/p>\n

Electrek\u2019s Take<\/h2>\n

Champagne also happens to be my federal deputy in Shawinigan, where I live in Quebec.<\/p>\n

To be honest, I believe that the meeting with Tesla has more to do with his role as minister of industry than his own district, but it\u2019s still not impossible that a Tesla factory would end up in the region.<\/p>\n

Obviously, I am biased, but the region is also objectively becoming an EV\/battery hub. There are about half a dozen manufacturing facilities related to battery and EV production within 50 miles of the region.<\/p>\n

GM is\u00a0partnering with POSCO on a $400 million factory to produce cathode material for EV batteries<\/a>\u00a0at a new facility in B\u00e9cancour. In the same region, Livent is going to process lithium and Nouveau Monde Graphite<\/a> is going to process graphite \u2013 both for EV battery production. In Shawinigan, Taiga<\/a> is planning a large factory to produce electric snowmobiles, watercraft, and UTVs. Flo<\/a> is producing EV charging stations a rock\u2019s throw away from the upcoming Taiga factory.<\/p>\n

There are also a bunch of smaller EV projects in the region, which is also known for its cheap hydroelectricity, and the Quebec government is investing over $1 billion in promoting projects related to battery production.<\/p>\n

I think if Tesla ends up building a Gigafactory in Canada, it would likely be between the greater Toronto region and somewhere in Maurice\/Centre du Quebec.<\/p>\n

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