Detroit-based General Motors Co. today announced a $210 Million (C$280 million) investment in its Oshawa Assembly in Ontario, Canada, to produce the next-generation internal combustion engine (ICE) full-size trucks.
This investment builds on GM’s commitment to Canadian manufacturing, which includes more than $1.2 billion invested in the Oshawa plant in 2020. Product details and timing related to GM’s future trucks are not being released at this time.
Two years ago, Oshawa Assembly delivered one of the fastest plant launches in GM history, demonstrating the flexibility and agility of the Oshawa workforce, GM says. Since it reopened, GM Canada states it has created 2,600 new manufacturing jobs, and thousands of indirect jobs at Canadian suppliers.
Production has increased to three shifts, and 50 percent of new production hires at the Oshawa plant are women.
“We are excited to announce additional investment for our Oshawa plant to support production of the next generation of full-size pickups,” says Marissa West, president and managing director of GM Canada.
“Oshawa Assembly plays a critical role in meeting customer demand for GM’s popular full-size trucks, helping GM lead the Canadian industry in heavy-duty truck sales in 2022 and take an early lead in total truck sales for 2023. Today, we are proud to say we will continue to build pickups with Oshawa pride for years to come.”
Lana Payne, national president of the Canadian auto workers union Unifor, says: “What this investment will do is significant for workers and families across Oshawa and the Durham region. By building the next generation of truck products thousands of jobs and the plant’s footprint will be secured for years to come.
“Continuing to invest in Oshawa autoworkers makes sense now and in the future. The skills, hard work, and dedication of Unifor autoworkers are what fuels Canada’s economic engine and builds world-class vehicles used every day all over the world.”
Since 2020, GM has made the following investments in Canadian manufacturing, research and development, and EV supply chain including:
- August 2020: Catharines Propulsion Plant opens Canada’s first cogeneration plant using renewable landfill gas to generate electricity and heat for the facility, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 70 percent.
- November 2020: GM announced plans to invest in Oshawa Assembly for full-size truck production, St. Catharines Propulsion Plant to support production of Corvette transmissions, and Woodstock Parts Distribution Centre to support Customer Care and Aftersales.
- January 2021: GM announced plans to invest in CAMI to support BrightDrop production.
- February 2021: GM announced the opening of its new Canadian Technical Centre McLaughlin Advanced Technology Track (CTC MATT) in Oshawa to support engineering development and testing of advanced software and technologies. Including the MATT, GM’s CTC today employs more than 1,300 engineers and software developers across four locations in Ontario.
- March 2022: GM and POSCO Chemical announced a C$500 million facility in Bécancour, Québec to produce cathode active material for GM’s Ultium batteries.
- April 2022: GM, with representatives from the Governments of Canada and Ontario, confirmed that the restart of Oshawa operations would create 2,600 new jobs and that CAMI Assembly would begin BrightDrop Zevo production by the end of year.
- November 2022: GM announced a long-term supply agreement with Vale Canada, for battery grade nickel sulfate from Vale’s proposed plant also at Bécancour, Québec. The amount of contained nickel will be sufficient to supply approximately 350,000 EVs annually.
- December 2022: GM, with representatives from the Governments of Canada and Ontario, celebrated the launch of BrightDrop production at CAMI Assembly, making the London, Ontario facility Canada’s first full-scale EV plant.
- February 2023: GM announced plans to invest in St. Catharines Propulsion Plant, subject to completing support agreements with federal and Ontario government partners, plant to manufacture new Ultium electric drive units. This would support around 500 jobs at the St. Catharines facility and enable the production of more than 400,000 EV drive units a year.
