Magna International Inc. says it has no plans to open any new plants in Canada despite a lower dollar, chief executive officer Don Walker says.

The nearly 10 per cent decline in the Canadian dollar relative to the U.S. greenback has helped make the Aurora-based global auto parts supplier more cost competitive, Walker told the company’s annual general meeting Thursday.

But the company said it’s concerned about Ontario’s industrial electricity rates and proposed pension plan, along with the future of its auto assembly plants.

“I’m worried about electricity prices in Ontario, where all of our plants are located,” Walker told a press conference after the meeting at The Westin Prince Hotel in Toronto. Magna operates 46 auto plants in Canada, all in Ontario where the major auto makers’ assembly plants are located.

Walker said he hoped whoever wins the Ontario election on June 12 takes action to reduce energy costs for the corporate sector.

Magna is also concerned about the proposed new Ontario Pension Plan, a key plank in Liberal Premier Kathleen Wynne’s election platform. The plan aims to close a shortfall in Canadians’ retirement savings.

But Magna said the plan would add $1,900 a year per employee to the company’s costs.

“That’s a pretty significant cost to us,” chief financial officer Vincent Galifi said, noting the company has 19,000 employees in the province.

Walker also said the Canadian and Ontario governments need to invest in auto assembly plants if they want to create and keep auto industry jobs.

“If the assembly plants all go it’ll be a lot more difficult (for Magna) to remain in Canada,” he said.

Earlier this year, Chrysler backed out of talks with the federal and Ontario governments about incentives to expand its plants in Windsor and Brampton, saying the plan had become a political football.

Ontario Tory leader Tim Hudak had slammed the governing Liberals for allowing Chrysler to hold provincial taxpayers “ransom,” calling the incentives “corporate welfare.”

Walker, who is also head of the industry-wide Canadian Automotive Partnership Council, said governments need to realize investments in auto plants pay big dividends by creating jobs and increasing tax revenues.

Globally, Magna plans to open 23 new plants, including eight in North America. None would be in Canada.

Despite Magna’s concern, it continues to invest in its Ontario plants, spending up to $150 million per year on capital expenditures, Walker noted.

It also continues to hire and create jobs, he noted.

Last month, Magna announced it would create 75 new jobs with a $1.5 million expansion of a plant in Newmarket, Ont.

Walker’s comments came after the company reported higher first quarter profit and sales and raised its guidance for the rest of the year.

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For the first three months of the year, the company said it earned $393 million, or $1.76 per share, up from $369 million, or $1.57 per share, a year earlier. The company reports in U.S. dollars.

Analysts on average expected earnings per share of $2.05, according to estimates compiled by Thomson Reuters.

The company had sales of $8.96 billion in the quarter, compared with $8.3 billion in the same quarter of last year.

Looking ahead to the year, the company said it expects sales of between $34.9 billion and $36.6 billion around the world, up from $34.8 billion in 2013.

Operating margins will be in the mid to high 6 per cent range, versus 6.3 per cent a year earlier. And capital spending will be $1.4 billion, versus $1.2 billion a year ago, the company said.

The increase came as Magna raised its outlook for the auto industry in North America and Europe.

It now expects North American auto makers to produce about 16.8 million vehicles, while Europe is expected to produce about 19.5 million. That compared with earlier expectations for 16.7 million and 19.3 million respectively.

“In the first quarter of 2014, our North American, European, and Asian production sales, as well as tooling, engineering and other sales and complete vehicle assembly sales all increased, while our rest of world production sales declined, each relative to the comparable quarter in 2013,” the company said in a news release.

The company’s Magna Closures unit is expanding its Dortec manufacturing plant to produce electronic control modules for power closure and roof systems.

The plant is also expected to produce a new electronic side-door latch that will be lighter and cost less.

The company, which operates in 29 countries and employs 198,000 people, supplies powertrains, cameras, closures and other auto parts. Major customers include General Motors, BMW, Chrysler, Ford and Volkswagen.