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查看配图Cleveland-Cliffs Chairman and CEO Lourenco Goncalves speaks at the company’s Middletown Works steel plant in Ohio on Aug. 21, 2026. U.S. Vice-President JD Vance and other Republican leaders attended the event marking a planned $1-billion investment. Credit: Facebook
Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE: CLF) faces possible court action from Ottawa over layoffs at Stelco, as U.S. tariffs and the shift of auto production south test Canada’s ability to protect manufacturing jobs.
The Ohio-based steelmaker has temporarily laid off 175 workers in Hamilton and denies breaching its takeover commitments. Industry Minister Mélanie Joly has warned that Ottawa could seek court-ordered compliance, penalties or a forced sale of Stelco.
“I bought Stelco because I could not afford anymore having Stelco flooding the market here in the United States to the detriment of my own company,” Cliffs chairman and CEO Lourenco Goncalves told CBC TV on Oct. 27. “Stelco has a very good cost structure and could be making a lot more margin and employing a lot more people.”
Goncalves presented a successful Stelco as an opportunity for Canada as well as Cliffs, arguing that its use of U.S. iron ore made the two countries’ steel industries interdependent.
For Canadian miners, the stakes extend from iron ore and zinc used in steel to nickel, lithium and graphite intended for batteries. Ottawa’s effort to keep more processing and manufacturing at home depends on factories buying those materials. Stellantis’ (NYSE: STLA) proposed sale of its Brampton assembly plant to defence manufacturer Roshel offers exposure to another market, but its capacity to replace lost auto jobs and demand remains uncertain.
Tariff squeeze
Cliffs bought Stelco in November 2024 in a deal announced at $3.4 billion (US$2.5 billion), including debt. Ottawa approved it with five-year commitments to maintain unionized employment, retain most salaried staff and honour collective agreements and pension obligations.
Trump’s steel tariff doubled to 50% in June 2025, raising the cost of serving U.S. customers from Canada. Cliffs supports that protection while advocating a common North American barrier against outside suppliers. It wants Ottawa to curb imports of galvanized steel, coated with zinc to resist corrosion.
The company has idled cold-rolled and coated finishing operations in Hamilton, about 70 km southwest of Toronto. Goncalves blamed an oversupplied Canadian galvanized-steel market, while saying stronger hot-rolled prices had helped make Stelco a positive contributor to third-quarter earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
Overall Stelco production would be maintained by concentrating on hot-rolled products, he said in the company’s quarterly results release. The cuts nevertheless reduce the finishing work performed in Canada before steel reaches customers.
Cliffs shares closed 0.2% stronger at US$13.10 in New York on Thursday, following a 2.2% gain the previous day.
Production moves south
Stellantis illustrates the broader contest for manufacturing. The carmaker’s U.S. expansion, announced in October 2025, envisages US$13 billion of investment over four years, a 50% increase in annual vehicle production and more than 5,000 additional jobs. The plan includes reopening Belvidere, Illinois, for Jeep Cherokee and Compass production.
Production of the Compass had been earmarked for Brampton. Instead, Roshel agreed on Monday to acquire the plant and associated equipment for an undisclosed amount. The sale agreement is expected to close by year-end, subject to conditions and regulatory requirements.
Ottawa knew of the potential sale months before Prime Minister Mark Carney condemned it as a betrayal of workers. Federal officials had been engaged regularly since August, CBC News reported Wednesday, citing a source with direct knowledge. Citing three sources, CTV News reported Tuesday that Ottawa took part in the talks and did not stand in the way.
Joly’s office denied that she negotiated or endorsed the deal. Her role was to help resolve the dispute between Stellantis and Unifor, and she had not met Roshel, spokesperson Mathis Denis told The Canadian Press on Wednesday.
About 2,200 Unifor members have been on indefinite layoff at Brampton. Ottawa and Ontario pledged up to $529 million and $513 million, respectively, in 2022 for a broader investment program involving Brampton, Windsor and research centres. The retreat tests subsidy conditions as well as labour agreements.
Joly was scheduled to meet Stellantis, Unifor and Ontario representatives Thursday. Stellantis has offered to repay government support received for Brampton’s original retooling plan, without disclosing the amount, The Canadian Press reported.
The contrast with Stellantis’ U.S. expansion shows the challenge facing Canada: a tariff-protected American market can attract production that Canadian governments had counted on retaining. Softer EV demand and changes in vehicle strategy are also reshaping investment decisions.
Battery plans shrink
Honda Motor (NYSE: HMC) indefinitely suspended its planned $15-billion Ontario EV and battery complex in May, following an earlier two-year postponement. The planned chain included vehicle assembly, batteries and components, tying the auto expansion to Canada’s ambitions in mineral processing.
Honda’s existing Canadian operations continue. On Monday, it announced a $166-million investment in Alliston for hybrid and gasoline vehicle production, part of a broader $867-million commitment including future spending and related expenses. It said the investment would maintain a workforce of more than 4,000.
– With files from Colin McClelland