Canada Pension Board Invests $600M in Chinese EVs as Ottawa Weighs Tariffs to Protect Domestic Industry

Other holdings include automakers BYD ($116 million), Li Auto Inc. ($69 million), Chongqing Changan Automobile Co. Ltd. ($26 million), and Nio Inc. ($19 million). Additionally, investments in automotive parts and systems manufacturers include Huizhou Desay SV Auto Co. Ltd. ($13 million), Ningbo Tuopu Group Co. Ltd. ($10 million), and Huayu Automotive Systems Co. Ltd. ($9 million).
The pension board also invested millions in Chinese battery manufacturers and suppliers, including Tianqi Lithium Corp. ($13 million), China Northern Rare Earth Group High-Tech Co. Ltd. (7 million), Eve Energy Co. Ltd. ($7 million), and Ganfeng Lithium Group Co. Ltd. ($6 million).
“Chinese producers are quite intentionally generating a global oversupply that undermines EV producers around the world, including here in Canada,” Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said during a June 24 press conference.
The 30-day public consultation, set to begin July 2, aims to receive potential policy responses in order to protect 550,000 Canadian jobs related to the sector, she said.
“There is no legislative or regulatory provision that would prevent investments in the PRC [People’s Republic of China],” the report stated. However, it recommended that the Canadian government “study how it could compile and maintain an official list of companies deemed unsuitable for investment.”