Quebec invests an additional US$300 million in Airbus A220 production

The Quebec government is investing another US$300 million — or $413 million Canadian — in the Airbus A220 commercial jet program, formerly known as the C Series. 

Quebec Premier François Legault made the announcement Tuesday afternoon at the Airbus assembly site in Mirabel, Que.

He visited the plant alongside Economy and Energy Minister Pierre Fitzgibbon Airbus Canada President and CEO Benoît Schultz and several MNAs for Mirabel and Les Plaines.

Legault said Airbus will invest US$900 million with the aim of expanding its activities and with Quebec’s US$300 million, the total investment reaches US$1.2 billion.

He also said Airbus has guaranteed that two-thirds of the jobs involved in building the jets will remain in Quebec. 

The investment maintains Quebec’s 25-per-cent share in the program and postpones the government’s exit from its investment by five years, to 2035 instead of 2030. Airbus has taken a lower stake to maximize their economic benefits in Quebec.

“Today, we are consolidating the presence here of Airbus, an aerospace giant, in a sector that creates enormous wealth for the province,” Premier Legault said in a press release. The major company currently employs 4,000 people in Quebec, including 3,500 in A220 production.

Minister Fitzgibbon noted that “the A220 is the fruit of Quebec genius, and we can be proud of developing one of the best aircrafts in the world.”

The injection of funds follows a previous government investment of $380 million in 2022, after Airbus invested $1.1 billion. 

The Quebec government funnelled $1.3 billion into Bombardier’s C series program in 2015, before it was purchased by Airbus in 2018. 

The A220 jet is assembled in Mirabel and Mobile, Ala., and Airbus says it expects the program to be profitable by 2026. 

–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews