Honda Canada pumps $492M into Alliston plant upgrades

Jan. 9, 2017 – Honda of Canada Mfg. (HCM), a division of Honda Canada, announced today it will invest $492 million over the next three years to help modernize its operations in Alliston, Ont., and “significantly” improve its manufacturing carbon footprint. Both the federal and Ontario governments will provide conditional grants up to $41.8 million each to help with the upgrades.

This investment, according to the Japanese automaker, will allow for further research and development activities to advance the latest manufacturing technologies. With these new investments, “Honda and HCM will continue to be a formidable contributor to the economic well-being of Canada’s automotive industry,” it added.

“Thank you to both the federal and Ontario governments for creating an environment which will allow us to further modernize our manufacturing facilities and make innovative upgrades possible, including building a state-of-the-art paint shop which will reduce the GHG emissions from our paint process by 44 per cent, further reducing our manufacturing carbon footprint in Canada,” said Jerry Chenkin, president and CEO of Honda Canada. “As a result of these upgrades, HCM will continue to provide thousands of well-paying, high quality jobs in Alliston and throughout Canada.”

Honda Canada has the capacity to produce 400,000 Civic and CR-V models annually for the Canadian and North America markets, as well as for export.

“Technology and innovation never stand still, so it’s essential that Ontario’s auto sector remains globally competitive. Honda is a cornerstone of our sector — accounting for about 17 per cent of Ontario’s vehicle output. With this partnership, the company and provincial and federal governments are joining forces to ensure that Honda’s skilled Alliston team remains a leader in building the vehicles of tomorrow,” said Brad Duguid, Ontario minister of economic development and growth.