A new report has confirmed that the NextStar electric battery plant will catalyze thousands of jobs in Windsor-Essex's electric vehicle (EV) industry.
Workforce WindsorEssex unveiled on Thursday afternoon its first report on the EV industry in the region, "Automobility in Windsor-Essex: Impact of the NextStar Energy Plant".
Keith Andrews, Strategic Advisor to the Board and COO of Invest WindsorEssex, said the report proves that a new era in automotive production has begun.
"The EV Impact Report reaffirms Windsor-Essex’s position as a national leader in the electric vehicle revolution and next-generation vehicle production," said Andrews. "The NextStar Energy battery plant and rapidly growing EV supply chain are already creating transformative economic opportunities, attracting new investments, and driving innovation in our region."
The report said that NextStar is pushing ahead with its goal of hiring 2,500 at the new battery plant, set to begin full production later this year, plus 650 people at the Automotive Research and Development Centre.
These jobs will lead to an estimated 1,960 spin-off jobs across multiple sectors in Windsor-Essex, for a total of 5,110 jobs created thanks to the battery plant.
Filling these positions will be vital through locally-based training programs, the report continued, with $16.5-million promised to support training, apprenticeship, and networking opportunities. Some of this will be accomplished through programs like Build a Dream, the Ontario Vehicle Innovation Network, the Unifor Action Centre, the Flex N Gate’s Battery Innovation Centre, and others.
The report also said that the EV industry's growth in the area has made possible post-secondary programs, such as the Mechatronic Systems Engineering degree program and EV Powertrain systems certification at the University of Windsor, as well as the Electric Drive Fundamental and Electric Drive Technician diploma programs at St. Clair College.
The report was created as an Employment Ontario (EO) project, with funding from the provincial and federal governments. It can be viewed in its entirety on the official Workforce WindsorEssex website.