Feds pledge $80M to turn lights back on at engine plant
WINDSOR, Ont. — The shutters could be coming off a mothballed Ford engine plant in Windsor, Ont.
Just days in advance of a rumored federal election call, Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Industry Minister Jim Prentice pledged up to $80 million over five years to reopen the facility, which will also support a new research and development center.
That’s on top of $17 million Ontario says it will fork over to reignite operations at the plant, which would create more than 500 jobs, according to a CBC report.
The money, according to the report, will come from Ottawa’s $250-million, five-year automotive innovation fund announced in the last federal budget.
The plant will be expanded to handle a variety of engines and research the development of alternative powertrains, fuel sources and hybrids.
An expansion is contingent on Ford’s approval of more production by the end of 2010, adds CBC.
Meanwhile, the St. Catharines Standard reports that media speculation that Harper will offer GM a similar financial package could be premature.
National media has reported that Ottawa would be kicking down cash for a new General Motors transmission line in St. Catharines, but there is no such announcements scheduled and Harper is not planning on visiting the Niagara region while in Southern Ontario this week.
The automaker has been asking the federal government and province for about $140 million for the transmission line as well as a new research centre in Oshawa.
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