Reaction to the Canadian governments decision to impose 100-percent tariffs on electric vehicles imported from China has started.

　　Faced with questions about its plans in Canada, EV manufacturer Polestar asserts that it has no intention of leaving the country in the face of the new tariffs, which could greatly affect the prices of its vehicles.

　　In an interview with Montreal daily La Presse, Polestar Canada General Manager Hughes Bissonnette was clear: Weve just established ourselves in Quebec, the team is based here, our dealers have just invested in new infrastructure. Were not going anywhere, we have a long-term plan that was already very well mapped out.

　　Made in China vehicles

　　Polestar, a stand-alone brand created by Volvo and wholly owned by Chinese auto giant Geely, has a plant in China and manufactures most of its EVs there. But as Bissonnette pointed out, the company also builds one model, its Polestar 3, in South Carolina in the U.S., and a new plant in South Korea is scheduled to go into operation next year. He added that the company already had a plan in place to counter these measures.

　　That plan could obviously include juggling with production schedules and locations to produce the vehicles it makes for North America outside of China. We can expect similar manoeuvring from other carmakers that build some of their vehicles in China.

　　Polestar currently sells the Polestar 2 sedan and Polestar 3 SUV in Canada, with the Polestar 4 on the way imminently. For now, says Bissonnette, pricing for the 2024 model-year is set and will not change. He did acknowledge that pricing could face adjustments down the road, but only in so far as the brand remains competitive on the market. A doubling of the prices seems highly unlikely.

　　The Canadian tariffs on Chinese-made EVs take effect officially on October 1st.

　　The Polestar 2 | Photo: Polestar

　　The Polestar 3 | Photo: Polestar

　　The Polestar 4 | Photo: Polestar

　　Polestar logo | Photo: Polestar