London Inc. Weekly

Written by Kieran Delamont, Associate Editor, London Inc.

GDLS-Canada lands $2-billion deal, becomes Ottawa’s first ‘strategic partner’

Prime Minister Mark Carney was in London Thursday (pictured) to announce a $2-billion, four-year contract for General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada (GDLS-Canada) to build 190 additional armoured combat support vehicles, expanding the Canadian Army’s fleet from 360 to 550. Mayor Josh Morgan joined Carney at the GDLS plant for the announcement, which Ottawa says will support about 6,000 jobs a year over the next eight years — most of them, per The London Free Press, in the London region itself (though Kapil Lakhotia of the LEDC noted that it’s not clear how many new jobs will be created, but that most of those will be existing jobs that will be sustained by a regular flow of federal dollars). All 190 vehicles will be assembled at the London factory, drawing on parts from more than 600 suppliers across the country, Carney said: steel armour from Regina, thermal imaging systems from Quebec and other components from Nova Scotia among them, leaning into the national supply chain angle. “These vehicles are designed to keep soldiers protected, mobile [and] mission-ready in the most demanding environments,” Carney stated. “Every single one will be built right here at GDLS-Canada’s factory, right here in London.” The deal makes GDLS-Canada the first company named a ‘strategic partner’ under the federal government’s new defence industrial strategy, a framework where companies commit to Canadian R&D and supply-chain investment in exchange for the government acting as an “anchor customer,” according to a release from the PM’s office.

The upshot: A marquee federal contract like this has been the holy grail for GDLS-Canada, which has been lobbying for more consistent contracts for much of the past couple of years, and have warned that lulls in production would be bad for jobs. This announcement both keeps them working as well as solidifying the London plant as a major node in the country’s defence-industrial complex. “It’s enough to keep us going for a few years, and the commitment from the federal government is huge,” said Unifor Local 27 plant chair Jeff Skinner. “We’ve got a lot of new members, all young families, counting on this work, so we’re ecstatic to be able to confirm this much work and have this kind of stability for a while.” David Perry, CEO of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute, said that stability was partially the point. “This contract is important to keep the facility, its production line and workforce running hot,” he told The Globe and Mail, also telling the Free Press that “the way the government’s been talking about it, that’s setting up a kind of official, longer-term relationship between the Government of Canada and the facility that is going to anchor the GDLS facility in London as a key cornerstone of Canada’s defence industrial base moving forward.”

Read more: London Free Press | Globe and Mail

Judge rejects Paystone’s insider sale, company heads to court-supervised auction

Paystone’s plan to sell itself back to its own founders after entering creditor protection last month has been rejected by an Ontario judge, who found the process behind the proposed deal to be “the opposite of the fair and fully transparent process required” in a ruling in late June. The London fintech company, which cited a $92-million debt load when it filed for creditor protection, had asked the court to approve a quick sale to a numbered company controlled by Paystone co-founders Tarique Al-Ansari and Abdullah Saab, with senior creditor Sandton Investments agreeing to shrink its own claim to $60 million in exchange. Justice FL Myers wasn’t having it, ruling the deal amounted to a “black box”, and stating that “there has been no process seeking arm’s length buyers for the debtor’s assets,” and “no one else has had a chance to be in the room where it happens.” The judge’s ruling also revealed that Paystone had started a process of soliciting interest in a sale earlier this year, something that was abandoned when a deal was struck with Sandton. The court has since ordered a proper, court-supervised auction instead, with a closing targeted for late August.

The upshot: Back in June, when it was first reported that Paystone was filing for creditor protection, the company’s founders presented a rosy picture, telling The London Free Press the filing was “not the result of any material issues with our underlying business performance,” and adding that “business continues without interruption.” The characterization offered by court documents released as part of the CCAA process paints a different story, however. One of the company’s creditors, BDC Capital, claimed in a court filing that Paystone had submitted cashflow projections that suggested it may run out of money as early as late June, and the judge wrote that the company’s finances had gone from a three-month cash runway to “very suddenly out of cash and about to fail.” What will come of the open auction process will be interesting to watch. According to the court documents, BDC Capital is reportedly in the process of assembling a $115-million outside bid for the company, and there are at least two parties who have submitted non-binding letters of intent or expressions of interest, so Paystone’s founders may be in for a bit of a financial fight if they want to hold on to ownership of the company. 

Read more: Ontario Superior Court of Justice | Newswire

PowerCo holds line on 2027

PowerCo says it is sticking to a 2027 start date for its St. Thomas battery plant, even as doubts swirl around parent company Volkswagen’s plans for EV production and the North American supply chain for EV components. “Our focus remains on delivering next-generation battery manufacturing in Canada through our landmark investment in the St. Thomas giga-factory,” a PowerCo spokesperson said in a statement, adding that production is still set to begin in 2027 and ramp up “as demand increases.” Conrad Layson, a senior analyst at AutoForecast Solutions, called the reaffirmation “significant” in an interview with The London Free Press — but said the plant, originally pegged at 3,000 workers, will likely open below its planned capacity. “It’s positive news, but it’s not news that’s going to guarantee that they can meet their original commitments initially,” he said. “Expectations are going to have to be adjusted or reduced.”

The upshot: It’s a bit of an unusual, Schroedinger’s battery plant-style situation unfolding right now, where it’s both full steam ahead and on the ropes at the same time. On the one hand, you have every public comment from PowerCo and VW stating on the record that plans have not changed, the timeline is still the timeline and the battery plant is a go, plus the physical reality that a plant is being built at the site, albeit at a snail’s pace. And then on the other hand, you have everything else: VW is talking about cutting 100,000 jobs and is rumoured to be looking at selling off more assets, and the facilities in North America that were supposed to be buying the batteries are retooling to build ICE cars instead. Confidence in the plant’s actual opening, even if nobody is keen to say it, appears to be low. That said, there is also an optimistic case, say analysts. Layson pointed out that Volkswagen has only followed through on two of six planned battery-cell factories worldwide, which raises the possibility that St. Thomas ends up supplying batteries to Europe, not just North America. “There’s no exploratory going on now for new battery plants,” he said, “so I think PowerCo in Ontario is going to fill the void for Volkswagen’s EV consumption in Europe.” Will it happen, or will the plant end up mothballed? Time will tell.

Read more: London Free Press

Decision over proposed Westmount Commons rezoning deferred

City hall’s planning committee voted unanimously this week to punt down the road a decision on Farhi Holdings’ bid to convert around 242,000 square feet of space at Westmount Commons shopping mall to office space, including a single 135,000-square-foot space earmarked for vehicle report software firm Carfax Canada, which is currently housed at 100 Kellogg Lane. The committee said a decision is pending a “suitable level of tenant commitment” from the company itself. City staff are still recommending council reject the rezoning outright, arguing offices of that size belong downtown. Still, the pressure campaign to get the city to agree to the rezoning appears to be in full swing. Representing Farhi Holdings, Jennifer Gaudet, an associate with urban planning firm MHBC, said the prospective tenant looked at many large-format office spaces, including downtown, before settling on Westmount. “Westmount Commons was identified as an ideal location by this business, as it can accommodate 900 parking spaces […] and is compatible with surrounding uses,” she said. Ward 10 Councillor Paul Van Meerbergen, whose ward includes the mall, is among the councillors backing the rezoning in the name of keeping jobs in town. “Business decides what it needs, and if business decides that it has to tick several boxes and they can’t find it in London, Ontario, they will simply move,” he said, warning of “800 jobs going bye-bye.” Downtown Councillor David Ferreira wasn’t buying it, saying “The sky is falling argument is not going to work,” while Councillor Jerry Pribil cut it down the middle, stating “We need firsthand information where we stand as a city. We cannot lose them.” Council will vote on the committee’s recommendation to defer any major decisions at its next meeting on July 21.

The upshot: From a technical and purely zoning standpoint the city probably has a strong case to stick to its guns and reject the rezoning application: it had to hash out the existing office space limits in a negotiation at the Ontario Land Tribunal just two years ago, on top of extensive work on zoning across the city, that it is now being asked to amend. But the question here, really, is a political one about how much the city wants to get involved in the tug o’ war between suburban and downtown office space. “It’s not our responsibility to say, ‘No, you can’t move to Westmount, you have to move to Citi Plaza.’ Our responsibility is to look at a zoning application and make a decision on that,” said Deputy Mayor Shawn Lewis. “Would I like to see more commercial space filled up downtown? Yes, but it has to be the right fit for the employer.” Comments from both Gaudet and Lewis suggest the main stumbling block for Carfax staying downtown is parking for its 600 or so staff (a number the company says is expected to grow). But that’s not an impossible thing to figure out, and the debate may change substantially if an actual proposed package of downtown office space materializes. Citi Plaza does appear to be sniffing around this file, saying it does have the parking and square footage to offer, and siding with downtown councillors in pushing to get Carfax to remain int eh core (Bonnie Wludyka, property manager at Citi Plaza, appeared at the planning committee, opposing the rezoning.) For now, with only a few months left on its term, council will likely file this under NCP: next council’s problem.

Read more: CTV News London | London Free Press

$22.1-million deficit, 150 fewer jobs at TVDSB

The Thames Valley District School Board (TVDSB) said this week it is projecting to cut 150 full-time jobs as it stares down a $22-million deficit for next year. TVDSB said the reductions are driven mostly by declining enrollment — it is projecting roughly 2,800 fewer students this year — and include cutting nearly 30 early childhood educator positions. TVDSB has been facing a budgetary crisis of its own over the last few years, and was put under provincial supervision in 2025, following a damning report into the governance of the school board, following allegations of expensive executive retreats and unauthorized compensation decisions. However, the deficit appears to be growing under supervisor Paul Boniferro, more than doubling from a $10.6-million shortfall in 2025-26 to a $22.1-million deficit projected for 2026-27. “Despite efforts to date, TVDSB remains in a structural deficit position, a result of a long-term imbalance in grant revenue and operational expenditures,” the budget projections read, stating that “difficult decisions and prioritization of resources have and will continue to be required.” Education Minister Paul Calandra’s office said in a statement that final staffing levels won’t be set until enrolment numbers are confirmed in September. The preliminary budget goes to the board for final approval later this summer.

The upshot: The projected cuts have education staff and faculty unions howling. Mary Henry, president of CUPE Local 4222, isn’t convinced the cuts are landing in the right place. “Everybody is overworked, less staff,” she said. “A lot of it has to do with the funding cuts that are not being provided by the Ford government, which is, if you ask me, neglect.” John Bernans, president of District 11 of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation, blasted the provincial government, telling The London Free Press “the funding from the provincial government has not kept up,” and adding that “at the end of the day, programs and classes will pay the price.” While teacher layoffs haven’t been announced (yet), attrition is still taking a toll. “There is a reduction in the allocation, they are hiring few teachers. We are down. Class sizes will be bigger, programs will be cut. It is chronic underfunding,” Bernans said. Henry took aim at the board’s own administrative costs: “When you calculate the math, one superintendent’s salary could pay for four or more support staff working directly with students,” she said. “If you’re trying to reduce your deficit, you need to look at other avenues instead of cutting the areas where students need support the most.”

Read more: CTV News London | London Free Press

Ron Sapsford tapped to chair LHSC’s new board of directors

Ron Sapsford, chair of the Middlesex Hospital Alliance board for the past year, has been named chair of London Health Sciences Centre’s (LHSC) new board of directors this week, as the hospital looks to reestablish a board of directors after two years under the supervision of provincial appointee David Musyj. Sapsford brings an accomplished résumé in Ontario healthcare leadership, including a stint as the province’s deputy minister of health from 2005 to 2010, plus senior roles at the Ontario Hospital Association, Hamilton Health Sciences and the Ontario Medical Association. “We have built the governance structures, accountability processes and oversight mechanisms needed to support a high-performing board. We now require an experienced and respected leader to help guide our renewed board and ensure strong governance well into the future,” Musyj said in a press release. “Ron Sapsford has dedicated his career to improving Ontario’s healthcare system, and his experience and leadership make him exceptionally well suited for this role.” Sapsford, for his part, said he’s looking forward to it. “LHSC is one of Canada’s leading academic health sciences centres and plays a vital role in advancing patient care, research and education,” he said. “I am honoured to serve as chair.”

The upshot: With a new board of directors being assembled, the rubber is now hitting the road on the governance reforms Musyj was brought in to oversee in 2024, following mounting deficits and major claims of fraud and oversight at the hospital. Sapsford appears, on paper at least, like the kind of steady hand Musyj had been looking to install in the leadership position. “[Sapsford] is a catch […] he’s going to do a really good job,” Musyj told The London Free Press on Wednesday. “He’s always been on the radar because at some point, supervision clearly is never permanent.” The aim, per the announcement, is to have the board assembled by early October, when Sapsford’s term will start. The end of Musyj’s term here remains uncertain, though; he said in a letter he will stay on until LHSC can “demonstrate sustained success in several key areas.” The first big job for the board of directors, working with Musyj, will be to install a new president and CEO. 

Read more: CTV News London | London Free Press

Dispatch: July 17, 2026

A summary of recent business appointments and announcements, plus event listings for the upcoming week.

View listings here

MORE FROM LONDON INC.