NextStar Energy has received an occupancy permit for its electric-vehicle battery plant in Windsor, Ontario, marking the official end of construction and the start of the operational phase at Canada’s first large-scale cell manufacturing facility.
The company said it will begin ramping operations at the cell plant this year, a key milestone for Canada’s emerging battery supply chain.
The $5 billion complex spans roughly 4.23 million square feet across 11 buildings, including two main structures for cell and module manufacturing as well as supporting facilities such as a recycling center and a safety testing laboratory.
At full capacity, the site is designed to produce up to 49.5 gigawatt-hours of cells annually.
NextStar, a joint venture of Stellantis and LG Energy Solution, has hired more than 950 full-time employees to date and has committed to creating 2,500 local jobs as production scales.
Company leaders say the immediate focus is moving from construction to industrialization.
Brett Hillock, chief operating officer, described a staged path that includes proving processes, running sample phases, and completing validation before switching to mass production.
He added that the goal is to begin mass production by the end of the year.
The occupancy permit arrives a little more than three years after Stellantis and LG Energy Solution announced the Windsor project, which both companies have pitched as central to their North American electrification plans.
Construction began in 2022 and involved more than 9,000 Canadian trades workers who logged over 8.4 million hours on site, according to the company.
The Windsor launch is a tangible step toward deepening regional battery capacity at a moment when automakers are balancing demand uncertainty with the need to localize critical components.
For Stellantis, in particular, bringing electrode, cell, and module production under one roof in Canada should reduce supply risk and logistics costs once the plant is fully validated.
The permit also tees up a hiring and supplier ramp that will be closely watched by parts makers on both sides of the border.
NextStar detailed the milestone in its official statement, noting the plant is now cleared for safe occupancy and gearing toward production.
NextStar’s leadership framed the approval as a handoff from builders to operators. While some minor work continues in non-operational areas, the facility is deemed fully approved for safe occupancy and ready for production, the company said.
The next stretch will be defined by how quickly the plant can move through sampling and certification to sustained high-volume output, a sequence that typically determines whether a new battery line hits its timeline for commercial deliveries.
