The Canadian province of Ontario will impose a 25% surcharge on electricity exports to parts of the United States, in response to U.S. president Donald Trump’s new tariffs on Canadian goods.
Ontario exports electricity to New York, Michigan, and Minnesota. The surcharge is expected to affect 1.5 million U.S. homes and businesses from Monday, adding around US$100 to their electricity bills under the Ontario government’s estimates.
“President Trump’s tariffs are a disaster for the U.S. economy. They’re making life more expensive for American families and businesses,” said Ontario Premier Doug Ford.
“Until the threat of tariffs is gone for good, Ontario won’t back down. We’ll stand strong, use every tool in our toolkit and do whatever it takes to protect Ontario.”
Ontario’s government said it was open to increasing the surcharge or ending electricity exports to the U.S. entirely, if the U.S. escalates its tariff measures.
Ford called for other Canadian provinces to add export taxes on goods bound for the U.S., recommending Alberta should impose a surcharge on oil. Alberta exports 4.3 million barrels of oil to the U.S. each day.
The Canadian government has also added CA$30 billion in retaliatory tariffs. Incoming Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said over the weekend that he will continue these tariffs once he takes office.
“My government will keep our tariffs on until the Americans show us respect. And make credible, reliable commitments to free and fair trade,” said Carney.
Trump signed executive orders to impose a 25% tariff on almost all imports from Mexico and Canada last week. He later agreed to pause tariffs on certain goods for one month, including vehicle-related goods from Canada and Mexican imports that comply with the 2020 USMCA trade deal.
Trump has also said the U.S. should annex Canada. “What I'd like to see — Canada become our 51st state”, said Trump last month, when asked about potential Canadian concessions that could end the tariffs.
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