If Canada matches the subsidies available in the United States, counting tax adjustments the federal government’s tab for the battery plant the German automaker plans to build in St. Thomas, Ont., will be $16.3 billion between now and 2032, not $13.9 billion, according to an analysis by the Parliamentary Budget Office. The U.S. subsidies are not taxable but Canada’s are, so the federal government will need to amend the Income Tax Act or compensate Volkswagen for the difference, Yves Giroux said. (The Logic)

Talking point: Giroux’s staff did not estimate the plant’s economic benefits, which the federal Liberals promise will be vast (though critics are skeptical). Those depend on economic conditions as Volkswagen ramps up production and on how quickly output grows—the plans for which, Giroux said in a news conference, are a commercial secret. The federal tax take from just building the plant should cover the interest on the $700 million the government will borrow to subsidize that part of the plan, but not the $700 million itself, he said.