Stellantis signed a preliminary agreement with Roshel regarding its idled Brampton assembly plant in Ontario.
Roshel proposes a defence manufacturing centre that could eventually restore more than 2,000 local jobs.
The plant stopped production in 2023, while its planned Jeep retooling was later suspended indefinitely.
The future of Stellantis’s Brampton Assembly Plant could lie outside conventional passenger-vehicle production following a preliminary agreement or memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Canadian armoured vehicle manufacturer Roshel.
Stellantis has signed an MOU with Roshel covering the potential sale of the Brampton, Ontario, facility. The agreement is not a completed transaction, but it establishes the framework for negotiations between the two companies.
The factory has been inactive since production of the last-generation Dodge Charger and Challenger and Chrysler 300 ended in 2023. Stellantis initially planned to retool the facility for the new-generation Jeep Compass, with preliminary work beginning in early 2024. That project was paused in early 2025, however, and the automaker subsequently announced that production of the next Compass would move to the United States.
The decision left the Brampton plant without an assigned vehicle and more than 2,000 workers on layoff. Stellantis Canada president and CEO Trevor Longley said the company examined several possibilities for the site before reaching the preliminary agreement with Roshel.
According to Longley, the proposed transaction offers a possible route toward restoring sustainable operations while retaining Brampton’s role in Canada’s advanced manufacturing sector.
Roshel wants to establish what it calls a Canadian Centre of Excellence for Defence Manufacturing at the facility, complementing the company’s existing automotive production. Its plans could include the manufacturing of armoured vehicles and ballistic steel.
Stellantis Could Officially Close and Sell Brampton Plant as Union Contract Nears Expiration
Roshel CEO Roman Shimonov said the company is targeting more than 2,000 jobs at the Brampton site. Laid-off Stellantis employees would receive first consideration for available positions.
The company believes some workers could return as early as 2026 through Canada’s Light Utility Vehicle procurement program and other automotive and defence projects. No purchase price, investment amount or firm employment schedule has been announced.
The possible sale has intensified the disagreement between Stellantis and Unifor, which represents workers at the plant. The union paused contract negotiations after the two parties reached an impasse over Brampton’s future.
Roshel Armoured vehicles | Photo: KiaUnifor maintains that defence manufacturing cannot fully replace the economic effect of large-scale automotive assembly, which supports suppliers and other regional businesses in addition to direct plant employment. It also argues that selling the facility would affect members’ wages, pensions and benefits.
Source: CBC
Roshel Armoured vehicles | Photo: Kia