Canada has put a stop to all rebate payments to Tesla Inc.
What Happened: Transport Minister Chrystia Freeland announced the suspension and ban. The freeze will persist until each rebate claim is individually scrutinized and verified. The Transport minister further informed, "I also directed my department to change the eligibility criteria for future iZEV programs to ensure that Tesla vehicles will not be eligible for incentive programs so long as the illegitimate and illegal U.S. tariffs are imposed against Canada," reported Toronto Star.
The decision to halt the payments, summing up to C$43 million ($30.11 million), was made ahead of Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's call for a general election on April 28. Earlier this month, The Star revealed that a Tesla dealership in Quebec City secured nearly C$20 million in public subsidies by reporting over 4,000 electric vehicle sales in just one weekend.
Toronto had previously discontinued financial incentives for Tesla vehicles used as taxis or ride-hail vehicles due to rising trade tensions with the U.S.
Why It Matters: This decision by the Canadian government comes after Nova Scotia excluded Tesla from their EV rebate program. The Progressive Conservative government, along with the NDP and Liberal opposition parties, unanimously voted to remove Tesla from the rebate program. Freeland's decision to exclude Tesla from future federal rebates follows similar actions by several provinces, driven by concerns over CEO Elon Musk's stance on Canada and tariffs.
Tesla has been the biggest beneficiary of Canadian EV rebates, claiming C$713 million ($499.9 million) since 2019. However, many suspected the EV maker of having misused the rebate program.
Flavio Volpe, president of Canada's Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association, stated, "Tesla exploited the iZEV program by sneaking in its Shanghai-built product to soak up Canada incentives while its CEO declared 'Canada is not a real country' on X. Sounds like they made their bed."
This exclusion from the Canadian EV rebate programs is a big setback for Tesla and could potentially impact the company's sales and market share in the region.
Tesla holds a momentum rating of 91.70% and a growth rating of 67.88%, according to Benzinga's Proprietary Edge Rankings. The Benzinga Growth metric evaluates a stock's historical earnings and revenue expansion across multiple timeframes, prioritizing both long-term trends and recent performance.
Tesla stock rose 3.45% to close at $287.99 on Tuesday. The stock has lost over 24% year-to-date.
