Funding encouraging sign for Alstom plant | Local Business

The announcement of $758 million in federal funding for the purchase of the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) Line-2 subway cars is encouraging news for Thunder Bay’s Alstom plant.

During Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland’s announcement last week of the federal government’s investment of $1.2 billion over 10 years for the TTC, she added that they would like to see the trains built at the Alstom plant in Thunder Bay.

Now the bidding process needs to begin, says Unifor Local 1075 president Justin Roberts.

“We’re still very early in the process. The next step is for the TTC to put out the Request for Proposal (RFP) for the bidding process, and everyone who’s able will be bidding on it — Alstom included,” Roberts said. “I am optimistic because of the way that the federal government and all three levels of government seem very supportive of them being built in our location.”

The contract to build 55-car sets equates to more than 300 individual cars and between a five or 10-year contract employing hundreds of workers.

But everything hinges on the contract wording.

“We need to make sure that the government actually uses the 25 per cent Canadian content rule, and we need to have additional language that states that they want the final assembly to be done in Ontario. Otherwise, Alstom could potentially do the work in Quebec instead,” Roberts said.

Thunder Bay-Rainy River MP Marcus Powlowski, said the city of Toronto and the TTC are the ones who have control over the requirements for companies wishing to submit a bid.

“There would be a point system and extra points would go to a company showing that there would be positive local economic spinoffs of getting the contract,” Powlowski said.

He added that there were also requirements of environmental friendliness and cybersecurity.

“The significance of the deputy prime minister saying that she wanted the cars to be built in Thunder Bay was politically huge, and it certainly reflects that the federal government, the mayor of Toronto and the Ontario ministry people want to see those cars built in Thunder Bay,” Powlowski said.

Workers of Unifor Local 1075 at the Thunder Bay plant, have built every subway car currently operating in the TTC subway system.

“There’s no way that Thunder Bay is going to build everything in the cars, but the goal is to have final assembly and to have most of the manufacturing done in Thunder Bay,” he said.

He added that Alstom plants in other parts of the country will likely manufacture parts for the cars, keeping the bulk of the assembly in Canada and Thunder Bay.

“That will have very positive implications in terms of the supply chain,” Powlowski said. “There are all kinds of businesses that work with, and supply, Alstom. That’s a big part of the benefits of getting that contract and doing the building in Canada.”

He added, “We have to wait until the ink on the paper is dry, but I think it’s looking very positive for Thunder Bay getting that contract.”