Honda, province to invest $857M in Alliston auto plant

Honda announced it will invest $857 million in its Alliston, Ont., plant over the next three years.

Ontario taxpayers will kick in 10 per cent of the total cost.

The announcement comes just weeks after the province lost out to Mexico to build a Ford engine plant in Windsor.

At a news conference on Thursday, Premier Kathleen Wynne said the province will allot Honda a conditional grant of up to $85.7 million for “leading edge technologies” for vehicle assembly and engine manufacturing.

Government officials said the grant money will be rolled out over five years.

“This investment by Honda is a vote of confidence in Ontario’s highly skilled workers,” Wynne said.

“It’s a vote of confidence in Ontario’s capacity for innovation and leadership and it’s a vote of confidence in Ontario’s auto sector, which remains one of the strongest and most diverse in the world.”

Honda employs more than 4,000 Ontario workers at three of its plants, and has built over six million vehicles in the province.

“The partnership reinforces Ontario’s position as a global leader in auto manufacturing, and will protect 4,000 highly skilled jobs at the plant,” the province said in a release.

The investment will also fund worker training, and research and development partnerships with Ontario universities and colleges.

Honda’s operation in Alliston will also serve as a teaching plant for the automaker’s facilities worldwide.

The Alliston operation will be the first Honda plant worldwide to launch the next generation Civic into mass production, the company said.

See below infographic on the Honda Alliston deal. Mobile viewers, click here.

With files from The Canadian Press

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