Stellantis signs preliminary agreement to sell idled Brampton assembly plant to Roshel

Automaker Stellantis NV STLA-N says it has signed a preliminary agreement to sell its idled Brampton, Ont., assembly plant to armoured car maker Roshel.

The Brampton factory stopped production in 2023 to retool to make the Jeep Compass, but the work was paused shortly after the U.S. placed 25-per-cent tariffs on Canadian-made cars in 2025. Stellantis last year said the Compass would instead be made in the U.S., leaving the future of the plant and 2,200 laid-off workers up in the air.

Stellantis said on Friday it has reached a memorandum of understanding with Brampton-based Roshel.

“Stellantis believes that Roshel represents a strong path to restoring sustainable operations at Brampton assembly, preserving the site’s strategic role in Canada’s advanced manufacturing sector and helping to avoid a prolonged period of inactivity,” Stellantis said in a statement.

The Unifor union said it walked away from contract negotiations with Stellantis on Friday after Stellantis told it of the Roshel agreement. The future of the plant was a priority for the union as it seeks a three-year deal for its 9,000 Canadian members.

“The persistence of the company’s proposal to close and sell the Brampton plant has hindered the bargaining process,” Unifor said.

The two sides began bargaining on Sept. 1, with the union seeking a three-year deal by Sept. 11 that matched the gains made in recent negotiations with Ford and General Motors. Those agreements provided raises of 3 per cent in each year of the deal.

The union said it is “actively considering next steps.”

Stellantis declined to provide more details of the sale process, citing the Unifor negotiations.

“For more than 100 years, Stellantis has invested in and grown with Canada, and we remain committed to supporting Canadian jobs, innovation and the long-term competitiveness of the country’s automotive sector,” the company said.

More to come