DaimlerChrysler Will Require Investment by Both Federal and Provincial Governments
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| DaimlerChrysler CEO Wolfgang Bernhard recently stated that the next four weeks will be detrimental to the future plans of the proposed plant. (Photo: Government of Ontario) |
The enterprise minister of Ontario, Jim Flaherty, announced his confidence in regards to the new DaimlerChrysler plant that has been proposed to be built in Windsor, Ont. He stated that Canada will not let this opportunity pass by. However, DaimlerChrysler said that they would like support from both Ottawa and Ontario before moving forward with the new facility.
On his way to the caucus, Flaherty stated, "I expect that the federal government and the provincial government will participate in the DaimlerChrysler project, but on terms that are being discussed. We're having very good discussion with... DaimlerChrysler, those discussions have been ongoing for more than two months now... They're also having discussions with our federal counterparts."
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| Ontario premier Ernie Eves. (Photo: Government of Ontario) |
Support from the government is imperative when it comes to building a new plant. Without government funding, the auto industry in Canada would not be able to compete with the hundreds of millions of dollars that southern American states are dishing out to the sector.
Ontario premier Ernie Eves declared his support by allocating over $500 million in funds for the auto industry earlier on this year. The funds are to aid in development, research, and training. One caveat applies though, in order to receive the funds companies will have to qualify for financial help. "If DaimlerChrysler or anybody else for that matter meets the criteria of (available funding)... they'll have to decide whether that's sufficient for them to locate in Ontario or not," commented Eves.