OPINION: Pay me now, pay me later, pay me again: the Trudeau government’s industrial strategy – by The Editorial Board (Globe and Mail – May 18, 2023)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

The thing about paying a ransom is, once word gets around, you end up with another ransom note in hand before too long.

The federal and Ontario governments are learning that painful, yet predictable, lesson, now that Stellantis and LG Energy Solution seemed to have noticed that competitor Volkswagen extracted far better terms for its state-subsidized electric-vehicle battery factory than they were able to secure for their state-subsidized facility a year ago.

Volkswagen, that canny negotiator, landed production subsidies from Ottawa worth up to $13-billion over 10 years, plus $700-million more in capital grants. Ontario tossed in $500-million. All told, the company could receive in excess of $14-billion in public funding – equivalent to 13 per cent of its market value.

Stellantis and LG were, understandably, a little miffed at having to make do with a mere billion dollars. So on Monday, the partnership announced that it had halted construction on its $5-billion project in Windsor, Ont., after saying a few days prior that it might set up shop elsewhere.

For the rest of this editorial: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/editorials/article-pay-me-now-pay-me-later-pay-me-again-the-trudeau-governments/