OTTAWA — Ottawa is committed to using Canadian steel and aluminum in national infrastructure and defence projects as U.S. President Donald Trump threatens to impose more tariffs, Industry Minister Mélanie Joly said Sunday.
After meeting with aluminum industry leaders at a summit in Montreal, Joly said the government is waiting to see if Trump follows through on his threat to increase steel and aluminum tariffs to 50 per cent through an executive order.
That tariff increase is set to go into effect on Wednesday.
The United Steelworkers union welcomed Joly's announcement Monday.
The union's national director Marty Warren said in a media statement the organization has "consistently called for strong Buy Canadian policies to protect good jobs and rebuild domestic supply chains, especially in the face of a worsening trade war and unfair global competition."
Warren said his organization will be watching to ensure the federal government follows through on its promise to use Canadian metals.
"That means clear, enforceable rules that actually prioritize Canadian-made materials — starting with steel and aluminum, but also including wood, critical minerals and other key sectors. This must be the beginning, not the end, of a broader industrial strategy that supports Canadian jobs and production," he said.
The Liberals campaigned in the recent election on "maximizing" the use of Canadian steel, aluminum and forestry products in public projects.
In March, Trump imposed 25 per cent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports to the United States. Canada is the largest steel supplier to the United States, accounting for nearly 25 per cent of all imports in 2023.
The tariffs are putting strain on Canadian metal producers and others throughout the metals supply chain.
Last week, aluminum trader Sinobec Group Inc. filed for creditor protection, blaming the tariffs — as well as the wider political landscape and a weak market — for its financial troubles.
The Montreal-based company with about 76 staff said in its creditor filing that the economic pressures and global tariffs contributed to it being unable to raise debt financing to fund a turnaround.
David Perry, president of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute and a specialist in defence procurement, said Joly's plan is "definitely a worthwhile initiative" but it comes with risk.
Introducing a Buy Canadian element to military procurement without introducing "additional inefficiencies in our procurement system, at a time when the government also campaigned on making it more efficient and streamlined, is going to be the real trick."
He said while the government makes many purchases that use large amounts of steel and aluminum, they're split into dozens or even hundreds of different contracts.
"Figuring out a way to make Canadian involvement in a supply chain be a key consideration in a way that makes both economic and strategic sense, I think, is probably going to take some creativity on the part of the federal government, but (is) certainly worth exploring," he said.
Some naval and defence procurement applications require a special certification not all Canadian producers have, Perry said, adding the government could step in to help them obtain the certification.
He said there is a difference between the steel used in general commercial applications, such as construction, and the steel used in defence applications — which, for example, might have to withstand the impact of a shell or an exploding landmine.
"Some of those applications in defence, they have to be both pretty thin, so that the vehicle or the ship isn't super heavy, as well as strong," he said. "And that's less of a consideration … with commercial construction-use steel."
— With files from Ian Bickis in Toronto
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 2, 2025.
David Baxter and Anja Karadeglija, The Canadian Press
