Premier Doug Ford says he won’t cut off the electricity that Ontario provides to 1.5 million homes in the U. S. without support from other provincial leaders.
Ford made these remarks during a press conference in Vaughan, Ont. on Wednesday. While he emphasized that “everything is on the table” in the ongoing trade conflict with the U. S., it seems he believes Ontario shouldn’t act alone.
“I can’t do it alone. You know, I’m not the only province that ships electricity down to the U. S. We need a Team Canada approach, and I’d be happy, within the provinces, to lead that approach,” he stated.
Last year, as tensions rose over trade, Ontario briefly imposed and then removed a 25 percent surcharge on its electricity exports to New York, Michigan and Minnesota.
Ford has previously claimed he would happily cut off energy supplies to those states “with a smile” if things get worse in the trade dispute.
“If this escalates and we can’t get back to the table, and he (Trump) keeps coming after us, all options are on the table, in my opinion,” Ford said Wednesday.
According to recent data from Statistics Canada, Ontario exported 12.8 million MWh (megawatt-hours) of electricity to the U. S. in 2024-more than any other province. British Columbia and Manitoba followed with 6.3 million MWh and 6.0 million MWh sent south of the border respectively.
Ontario’s earlier surcharge on its electricity exports caught Trump’s attention at that time. The president questioned why Canada wasn’t generating enough power domestically before warning that Canada would face a financial consequence “so big” it would be “read about in history books for many years to come,” which led to reversing that surcharge.
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Ontario Won’t Advertise Against Tariffs in U. S.: Ford
Ford announced his government won’t run anti-tariff ads in the United States leading up to November’s midterm elections because he wants to ease tensions amid trade disputes. “I want to (run the ads), but I don’t want to heighten this fight at all,” he said when asked about s for which tens of millions were spent producing and airing. “We need to get back at the table. We got to simmer things down.” Ford expressed hope that Democrats could “get their act together” ahead of the Nov. 3 vote while pointing out divisions within their party. Earlier this week, he urged Americans not to vote for anyone “that is going to kill your jobs,” adding he’d go “door-knocking” himself if possible. His desire for reduced tensions follows similar comments made during an interview on U. S. television after a heated exchange with Trump just days before. On Monday, Ford told Trump he could “kiss my ass” following Trump’s threat of imposing a 50 percent tariff on Canadian cars and trucks. Trump responded by saying that Ford was “the less charismatic, intelligent and overall unimpressive brother of the late, great Rob Ford.” While Ford mentioned he doesn’t regret his comments, he acknowledged that their back-and-forth became a little too intense. On Tuesday, Ottawa announced matching tariffs against hundreds of American goods in response to Trump’s 50 percent tariffs affecting around $28 billion worth of Canadian products after trade discussions fell apart last Friday.Ford and Smith Disagree Over Oil Exports
In addition to issues concerning electricity exports, Ford has urged other Canadian leaders like Alberta Premier Danielle Smith to halt oil exports into the U. S. as a way of applying pressure on them. Smith has consistently rejected this idea but remains committed to building a pipeline proposed by both provinces last month. “As I’ve said in the past, cutting off Alberta energy exports to the U. S. would be extremely harmful for Canadians and is not a viable option,” Smith stated earlier this week after speaking with Ford over phone.Ford mentioned that despite their differences , both premiers actually get along “quite” well , and plans are being made for him visit her province soon.Source link
