Article content

The Quebec government will offer aluminum producers loans and loan guarantees worth an estimated $100 million as it looks to support the industry in the face of import duties imposed by the United States.

The program, an expansion of a program for the softwood lumber industry, is intended to ensure that Quebec’s aluminum producers can keep producing and keep exporting to the U.S., Economy Minister Dominique Anglade said on Monday, after meeting with representatives of the aluminum industry and its workers in Montreal.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Quebec offers aluminum industry $100 million in loans, loan guarantees Back to video

The support, which will also be available to the steel industry, will target smaller aluminum producers and transformers, not the primary aluminum sector, the companies that make “raw” aluminum from mined ore.

The large producers of the primary aluminum sector are better able to absorb the cost of the tariffs, said Jean Simard, president of the Aluminum Association of Canada.