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- GM CEO Mary Barra said the commercial electric van market is developing much more slowly than expected.
- Changes in the regulatory framework and vehicle incentives have made business even more difficult, Barra said.
General Motors plans to discontinue production of its Brightdrop electric van in Canada and will re-evaluate its CAMI assembly plant in Ingersoll, Ont., “for future opportunities,” CEO Mary Barra said on Oct. 21.
The Detroit Free Press, part of the USA TODAY Network, first reported in March that GM was facing a glut of hard-selling BrightDrop delivery vans, another flaw in EV sales forecasts that left hundreds of vehicles parked on both sides of the U.S.-Canada border.
“This is not a decision we made lightly given the impact on our employees,” Barra said. “However, the development of the commercial electric van market has been much slower than expected, and changes in the regulatory framework and vehicle incentives are making business even more difficult.”
The Detroit automaker assigned electric commercial vans to its Chevrolet brand last year in an effort to improve performance as GM seeks to position itself in the market against competitors such as Ford and Rivian.
Industry experts expect the cost of not only vehicles, but all EVs, to rise, making imports of these types of vehicles less attractive, especially after President Donald Trump succeeded in overturning part of the anti-inflation law signed into law by President Joe Biden on August 16, 2022, providing up to $7,500 in federal incentives for EVs through 2032.
Paul Wattie, director of industry analysis at AutoPacific, said the move “reflects some pragmatism” at GM. Brightdrop was born with bold ambitions, but the commercial EV market has not kept up with expectations.
“Vehicle buyers remain cautious, infrastructure is limited and incentives have changed, making scaling up difficult,” he said. “By ending Bright Drop, GM is demonstrating that it is willing to take on tough challenges to protect its core business.”
Telemetry vice president Sam Abuelsamid said BrightDrop has sold a total of just 7,500 units to date, compared with 27,000 for crosstown competitor Ford’s E-Transit and 30,000 for Rivian vans.
Rivian’s deal with Amazon, the company’s largest shareholder, is another bonus for the company.
“Brightdrop has not been able to generate significant traction in business,” Abuelsamid said.
GM said in a government filing last week that investments in electric vehicles cost it $1.6 billion in the third quarter as it plans to expand production of gasoline-powered vehicles. GM said in its third-quarter earnings conference on Oct. 21 that it will likely impose similar charges in the fourth quarter due to further capacity changes at the plant, including the option to reduce BrightDrop production.
“By acting quickly and decisively to address overcapacity, we expect EV losses to decline from 2026 and beyond, positioning us even better as demand stabilizes,” Barra said on an investor conference call.
When GM first cut back production earlier this spring, CAMI had about 1,300 employees. Unifor said in a statement that it plans to immediately meet with GM and both levels of government “to seek new product mandates and ensure CAMI remains a pillar of Canadian auto production.”
Unifor added in a statement that the loss comes ahead of the company’s previously announced shift elimination at GM Oshawa, scheduled for January 2026, and Stellantis’ decision to move Jeep Compass production to the United States.
“The reality is that CAMI has been hit from both directions as Mr. Trump moved aggressively to withdraw support for EVs and impose 25% tariffs on Canadian auto assembly plants,” National Unionist Party Chair Lana Payne said in a statement. “More than 1,000 workers and their families are now paying the price for President Trump’s political interference and GM’s failure to stay the course.”
Jackie Charniga covers General Motors for the Free Press. please contact her jcharniga@freepress.com.
