Stellantis signs memorandum of understanding with Roshel for potential Canadian factory sale

By Kalea Hall

Sept 11 (Reuters) - Jeep maker Stellantis has signed a memorandum of understanding with Canadian armored vehicle maker Roshel outlining a potential sale of an idled Stellantis car factory near Toronto, the automaker said on Friday.

Stellantis said that, after considering several potential opportunities for the facility, the company "believes that Roshel represents a strong path to restoring sustainable operations at Brampton Assembly."

Roshel CEO Roman Shimonov said in a statement on Friday that the company plans to establish a center for defense manufacturing in Brampton, Ontario, where the plant is located.

Bloomberg News first reported the memorandum of understanding.

Stellantis is in contract negotiations with Unifor, a Canadian union representing autoworkers at Stellantis, General Motors and Ford, to replace a deal that expires on September 20.

"We are ready to provide letters of commitment for first consideration to laid-off Unifor workers and bring them back to work as early as 2026," Shimonov said.

Unifor has said it was at an impasse with Stellantis "following 10 days of intensive talks." The union said it has paused negotiations and is considering next steps.

The company has not disclosed plans for its other Canadian plants: the Windsor Assembly Plant and Etobicoke Casting Plant, the union said.

"Stellantis has offered only conditional agreement with the economic pattern settlement tied to the closing of Brampton, creating added complications for reaching a deal," the union said in a statement, referring to a wage settlement.

Last month, union leaders said Stellantis notified them it was considering closing and selling the Brampton plant.

Stellantis closed Brampton in 2023 for retooling. Stellantis paused that work in 2025 before moving future production of its Jeep Compass to a factory in Illinois, ​after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on Canadian goods.

(Reporting by Kalea Hall in Detroit, Ruchika Khanna in Bengaluru and Divya Rajagopal in Toronto; Editing by Tasim Zahid, Mike Colias, Rod Nickel)