Federal government invests $5 million in development of first Canadian-made electric vehicle

Windsor, Ont. -

The government of Canada is investing $5 million to support the development of the first Canadian-made zero-emissions concept vehicle.

The federal government announced the FedDev Ontario investment in the Automotive Parks Manufacturer’s Association (APMA) on Wednesday. The funding will support ‘Project Arrow’ which will see the automotive industry’s first Canadian-made zero emissions concept vehicle.

“Windsor-Essex is capitalizing on this once-in-a-generation shift unfolding in the auto sector and the jobs that come with it, positioning our region as the automobility capital of Canada. With FedDev Ontario support, APMA is leading the charge to accelerate Canada’s transition to a net-zero future,” Irek Kusmierczyk, Windsor-Tecumseh MP said in a government news release.

APMA plans to utilize its connections in the automotive manufacturing industry to bring together key partners in southern Ontario to facilitate the project where they will work together to design, engineer and build the concept car and its digital twin which will be used as a virtual platform for testing, the release says.

Some of the key project activities surrounding the digital concept vehicle will be done at the FedDev funded Virtual Reality CAVE at Invest WindsorEssex. The digital concept vehicle will be used as a virtual platform for testing and serve as a blueprint before concepts are integrated into the physical car.

“On behalf of the team at Invest WindsorEssex, and as the official Simulation partner for Project Arrow, we are thrilled about today’s funding announcement for APMA,” said senior manager at the Automobility and Innovation Centre Ed Dawson. “Thanks to FedDev Ontario for supporting this extraordinary project and helping to showcase the talent and expertise that exists in our region as so many companies participate in the development of the vehicle. We look forward to our continued partnership with APMA as the vehicle comes to life both virtually and physically.”

According to the federal government, FedDev’s investment in the project will help to support 80 jobs, leverage more than $6.6 million in other funding and support 40 automotive suppliers and tech firms.

“Our government is working hard to ensure that Canada’s future will be healthier, more equitable, greener and more prosperous. Investments like the one made today in Project Arrow is advancing our country’s shift toward electrification in the automotive and manufacturing sectors, a critical step towards reaching the government’s goal of accelerating Canada’s net zero emissions future,” said Minister of economic development and official languages Mélanie Joly.

The government says Project Arrow will help lead the transformation of Canada’s auto sector from traditional fuel to zero-emission vehicle development.