Trudeau and Ford lure $575M Goodyear investment in Napanee with $64.3M in subsidies

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company said its more than $575-million investment will create another 200 skilled positions in Napanee, 225 kilometres east of Toronto, ballooning its workforce to 1,000 workers by 2027.

Trudeau and Ford boasted Monday that Goodyear’s gambit inflates recent EV investments to $46 billion across Canada in recent years.

Lured by federal and provincial production subsidies and other incentives, most of that money is coming to Ontario.

“Companies from across the world are choosing Canada. It’s another vote of confidence in Canada’s auto sector workers,” said Trudeau, who is soon expected to match U.S. trade tariffs on heavily subsidized Chinese-made EVs to protect the domestic industry.

The prime minister noted “Goodyear is modernizing its Napanee plant, (which) will create manufacturing jobs, grow our EV industry and use modern technology to keep our air clean.”

Ford added the company’s expansion was “another significant boost to Ontario’s growing electric-vehicle sector, building on the billions of dollars that have been invested in the sector over the past four years.”

With the premier considering a provincial election next spring, a year ahead of the scheduled June 2026 vote, the campaign-style announcement helped him to showcase how his Progressive Conservatives are working well with Trudeau’s Liberals.

“Today’s announcement is another great example of all levels of government — of everyone — coming together to support local businesses and workers and to help create better jobs and bigger paycheques,” said Ford.

“Across Ontario, we’re seeing major investments and new jobs created as we build out our end-to-end EV supply chain, connecting critical minerals in Northern Ontario to world-class manufacturing across the province,” said Ford.

“Companies are choosing Ontario because of our transportation infrastructure, our competitive business environment and our skilled workforce.”

Goodyear’s announcement that it would soon manufacture another two million tires annually in Napanee may also help Trudeau’s struggling Liberals, who are expected to face voters in October 2025.

Trailing Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives in public-opinion polls, the prime minister attacked the Tory leader, accusing him of choosing “to write off Canada’s auto sector” by questioning the subsidies.

Trudeau also railed against Poilievre for having “no plan to fight climate change (and) … no plan for the economy either.”

“It’s a bit of a joke that Poilievre is suddenly talking about workers in the auto industry — he has said repeatedly that he wouldn’t be making these investments in our auto industry,” he said.

But Tory MP Kyle Seeback (Dufferin—Caledon) countered that Trudeau “has failed to stand up to the regime in Beijing to defend our industries against flooding our market with cheap EVs, steel, aluminum and other products.”

“Common-sense Conservatives will stand up for our workers, take a stand against authoritarian governments threatening our industries, and we will bring home investment so we can build things in Canada again and create powerful paycheques for our workers,” said Seeback.

Goodyear said its Napanee plant will be at net-zero emissions by 2040, a decade ahead of Ottawa’s goal of a clean, green economy by 2050.

It pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 10 per cent by 2030 and by 100 per cent within the next 16 years.

Goodyear CEO and president Mark Stewart — who joined the rubber giant from Stellantis earlier this year after being key to the auto company’s EV transformation — said the announcement “reinforces our long-term commitment to Canada.”

“We are appreciative to the federal, provincial and local governments for their support and to our Napanee associates for their dedication to building the next generation of tires,” said Stewart.

Goodyear, which has been in Napanee for 35 years, is that region’s largest single employer.

“They are an integral part of the growth and success of our community,” said Greater Napanee Mayor Terry Richardson.

Flavio Volpe, president of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association, who has worked closely with Ottawa and Queen’s Park on the EV strategy, said Goodyear’s investment was significant.

Because EVs are heavier and quieter than traditional gasoline-powered cars and trucks, they require high-tech tires.

“We needed to win this from American and Mexican competition,” said Volpe, noting it comes despite U.S. President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which gives huge subsidies to encourage companies to remain stateside.

“A U.S. company investing in Canada in an IRA era is very interesting,” he said.