‘Good corporate neighbours’: Locals fear disruptions from giant VW plant in Ontario

'I wanted my own farm and my own space (so) that I could do my own thing ... never planned on having the largest EV plant in North America out of my front window.'

ST. THOMAS, ONTARIO — Jenna Tranter thought she had finally found rural tranquillity a decade ago when she bought a lush 25-acre farm where she could teach horseback riding, removed from the traffic and noise of a major city.

But she recently learned she’d be getting a new neighbour: Volkswagen, Europe’s largest carmaker, has announced plans to build a massive electric-vehicle battery manufacturing plant in St. Thomas, Ont., a block away from her home.

The German auto giant’s choice of St. Thomas as the site for its “gigafactory” was widely cheered — including by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Ontario Premier Doug Ford — and is expected to create up to 3,000 direct jobs, as well as up to 30,000 spinoff jobs at companies supplying the plant.

But not everyone was thrilled.

“It is a very sad situation, and we are very angry and upset,” said Tranter, standing outside her red brick farm house in the municipality of Central Elgin, which borders St. Thomas and the proposed factory site.

“I wanted my own farm and my own space (so) that I could do my own thing … never planned on having the largest EV plant in North America out of my front window.”

Volkswagen has said it will invest $7 billion in the project, while the Canadian government has pledged up to $13 billion in subsidies.

The government has hailed the investment as a vital step towards a cleaner economy, saying it will generate around $200 billion in value and transform St. Thomas and surrounding areas.