TORONTO — Urgency was the key word at an electric vehicle conference Wednesday as manufacturers emphasized the need for more coordination and government support in order to take advantage of the tectonic shift underfoot in the automotive industry.
"We're not going to be able to beat the IRA in terms of amount of money, but we need to match some aspects, so that we can encourage the investment to happen in Canada where it makes sense." "Trying to localize more of that supply chain base is critical and that's how we'll get the jobs of the future."
"Every vehicle is being rethought, not just in terms of design, but in terms of supply chain," said Hasenfratz."We're really seeing momentum building in terms of new opportunities on electrified vehicles." The investments are needed not only on the manufacturing side, but also for the supplies of raw materials, battery recycling, software and research as the entire industry shifts, panellists said at the conference.