Stellantis says it has signed an agreement to sell its idled Brampton, Ont., assembly plant to defence contractor Roshel.

Under the asset purchase agreement, Roshel will acquire the facility and its associated equipment for an undisclosed amount.

In a joint release, the companies said they are also exploring opportunities to work together on vehicle technologies and related services for the defence industry.

The move comes as contract talks between Stellantis and the union representing more than 9,000 of its workers in Canada remain at an impasse.

The two sides have clashed over the future of the Brampton site as well as issues around job security. Last month, Stellantis workers in Canada voted to give their union a mandate to strike, with 97.3 per cent of members in favour of authorizing a potential job action.

“We’re currently not in a strike position and obviously lots of this to be worked out. Our goal here is to reach a resolution and to get to the bargaining table when we can, and we’ll do our best to get an agreement,” Unifor national president Lana Payne said at a press conference Monday evening.

“A strike is always a last resort and it remains a last resort here.”

She said the union will evaluate its next move and that it has a “four-party meeting” scheduled for later in the week with the company and government officials to discuss the future of the Brampton plant.

Payne said the sale of an auto assembly plant and loss of vehicle production capacity is devastating for Canada’s industry.

“Having sold an auto plant is a worst-case scenario, and that’s what we’re facing right now. Stellantis has betrayed our members with an underhanded deal to sell the plant and walk away from its commitments to these workers,” she said.

“Allowing the sale to move forward is a critical failure of our national auto strategy and breaks the federal government’s promise to protect autoworkers from this U.S. trade war.”

Talks broke down in September when Stellantis signed a memorandum of understanding with Roshel, a Brampton-based manufacturer of armoured vehicles, for a potential sale of the facility.

More than 2,000 workers were laid off from the Brampton plant when it halted operations in 2023.

The facility had been slated to be retooled for Jeep production, a process that began early in 2024, before the company paused the plan in early 2025. It later announced it was moving production of the Jeep Compass to Illinois, leaving the plant idled indefinitely.

“Brampton employees have made lasting contributions to Stellantis, and we take our responsibilities to them and their families seriously. After three years of paid layoff, we remain committed to working with Unifor on a fair resolution,” said Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa in the news release.

“With this announcement, we are driving forward our broader strategic goals, opening new opportunities for Stellantis in the defence industry, and creating a path to return the Brampton facility to productive industrial use.”

Roshel founder and CEO Roman Shimonov said the company’s plan is to create a new centre of excellence for advanced manufacturing “which will allow Canadian companies to better serve customers at home and export into allied markets.”

“Aligned with Canada’s defence industrial strategy, it will strengthen our sovereign industrial capabilities, drive local economic growth and bring much-needed manufacturing space and jobs to the Toronto area,” Shimonov said in the release.

“We look forward to working collaboratively with government and the broader community to bring this vision to life.”

As the facility returns to operations, there will be opportunities for around 700 to 1,000 laid-off Stellantis employees to return to work under Roshel. The defence company also plans to lease around one-quarter of the site’s space back to Stellantis for automotive work.

The transaction is expected to close by the end of this year, subject to certain conditions, including government and regulatory requirements.

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown said in a statement Monday that he welcomes the opportunity for a local company to bring manufacturing back to the site and strengthen Canadian defence production.

Brown called Roshel a “Brampton success story” and said members of Unifor Local 1285 and their families have lived with years of uncertainty.

“They deserve a fair resolution from Stellantis and a clear path to good-paying jobs,” he said.

Brown called on Stellantis to work with Unifor toward a resolution and on Roshel to work directly with Local 1285 to identify hiring and training opportunities for laid-off Brampton autoworkers.

He said Unifor members also deserve a fair resolution from Stellantis.

“I’m calling on Stellantis to work with Unifor to reach that resolution, and on Roshel to work directly with Local 1285 to identify hiring and training opportunities for laid-off Brampton autoworkers,” he said.

Brown said Stellantis also needs to repay taxpayers for the public funding it received to support automotive production in Brampton.

“I will continue pressing the federal government to recover that money and hold Stellantis accountable for the commitments it made to our workers and our city,” the statement reads.

Unifor has previously written to federal Industry Minister Mélanie Joly urging the government to block the potential sale and clarify whether Stellantis’ intentions to offload the plant breached its commitments to Ottawa.

Last year, Prime Minister Mark Carney expressed disappointment over Stellantis moving Jeep Compass production to the United States.

At the time, the prime minister said he reminded Stellantis of its commitments to the government under funding deals — such as keeping the Brampton plant — and warned there would be consequences if it failed to meet those obligations.

Joly has said the government would “get our money back” if the company doesn’t fulfil its obligations. She said Monday that Stellantis’ decision “does not erase the commitments they made to workers in Brampton.”

“They deserve answers, respect and above all, a secure future,” Joly said in a statement.

The minister urged all parties to return to the bargaining table and said she has reached out to the automaker, union, Ontario government and representatives of the Brampton plant to convene a meeting this week.

“I expect them to come to the table with a single focus: protecting good paying jobs in Brampton,” Joly said.

“For Brampton’s autoworkers, walking away is not an option.”

Stellantis said it acknowledges its obligations to employees under collective agreements and applicable laws and that it “remains prepared to engage with Unifor to negotiate a settlement to assist union represented employees.”

With files from Global News’ Rachel Morgan and The Canadian Press