Production ceases on CAMI’s BrightDrop

Jeff Helsdon, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Workers at CAMI’s Ingersoll automotive plant woke up to bad news on Tuesday morning with the announcement that General Motors is ceasing production of the BrightDrop electric van produced at the facility.

In a letter to employees obtained by the Post, Kristian Aquilina, GM Canada President Managing Director and Plant Director Bill Harkness, broke the news that the electric commercial BrightDrop van is being dropped “due to slower than expected market growth”. The letter states that team members at CAMI will remain on layoff, and the site will be assessed for future opportunities.

“Over the past three years, we’ve worked hard to build a steady customer base for BrightDrop including expanding dealer distribution,” the letter said. “Despite everyone’s effort, it’s been a real struggle. We’ve faced long periods of downtime at the plant, and for the last six months, operations have been completely stopped.”

The next step outlined in the letter is working with Unifor to follow the collective agreement, which includes full pay for the next six months.

When the BrightDrop was launched in 2021, it was promoted as a step towards further converting North America to electric vehicles. However, the vehicle was met with slower-than-expected uptake from the start, with AMI operating below capacity since 2022.

The plant employs 1,200 people, plus there are further jobs with suppliers spread across the area.

“Obviously, as an Oxford County member, we’re saddened to hear the news because it affects not only Oxford County, but surrounding counties,” said Tillsonburg Mayor Deb Gilvesy.

Tillsonburg Economic Development Commissioner Cephas Panschow said while GM won’t release details about the addresses of its employees, he knows anecdotally there are a significant number of people who live in or around Tillsonburg who work at CAMI and expects this will impact the local economy.

Based on his knowledge of local companies that may produce parts for CAMI, Panschow said as far as supply chain jobs, there should be “minimal impact to Tillsonburg’s economy.”

More details will follow as this story develops.