Quebec's 'super minister' of economy and energy resigns from cabinet

Pierre Fitzgibbon, the provincial minister for economy and energy and a prominent figure of the ruling Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) cabinet, is stepping down.

Fitzgibbon's departure comes days before Quebec's National Assembly was set to return for the fall session and with several major projects underway in his portfolio. The minister had been charged with leading the development of the province's electric vehicle manufacturing sector. That included lithium mining for EV batteries, as well as factories to manufacture those batteries.

One project, the building of a Northvolt plant on Montreal's South Shore, has seen setbacks and controversy because of the Quebec government's efforts avoid evaluation by its environmental watchdog (BAPE) — a move experts said hindered public trust.

Over the weekend, Fitzgibbon admitted the $7-billion project could take up to a year-and-a-half longer than expected to open, noting a slowdown in the EV battery industry worldwide.

Before the legislature went on summer break, Fitzgibbon tabled a bill that proposed major reforms to the province's energy system. It was expected to be debated this fall.

The Terrebonne MNA had been in politics since 2018, after a successful business career. He is a friend of Premier François Legault and the two studied together at the reputed Montreal business school, HEC, which is part of Université de Montréal.

Fitzgibbon told a select number of people about his resignation Tuesday, and it was soon confirmed by CBC/Radio-Canada journalists.

CAQ caught off guard?

Speaking to reporters in Rimouski, Legault said Fitzgibbon would address his party's caucus at a dinner Tuesday evening "that has been planned for a long time."

"Pierre Fitzgibbon will speak to them first tonight and then I will speak to you tomorrow morning with him to give you all the details," the premier said.

Despite CAQ politicians staying mum about Fitzgibbon's departure Tuesday, opposition leaders spoke out. 

Parti Québécois Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon called for a cabinet shuffle and for the economy and energy portfolios to be separated, saying they shouldn't each be treated as "part time."

He called Fitzgibbon's resignation "sudden" and said it seemed improvised, so shortly before his wide-ranging energy bill was set to be debated.

"It gives an aura of a government that's at the end of the line and overwhelmed by its situation," Plamondon said.

"[Fitzgibbon] created a situation where, in the space of a couple years, he sold our electricity to companies and to the United States at a discount, which now puts us in an electricity deficit."

"Clearly, this wasn't planned because otherwise the premier wouldn't be saying to us, 'I'll talk to you about it later.'"

Quebec Liberal Party Leader Marc Tanguay also said the resignation appeared sudden and unplanned. He thanked Fitzgibbon for his years of civil service and said that no matter the reasons for Fitzgibbon leaving, it was a huge blow to Legault.

"To lose the person to whom he'd given all the reins on matters of the economy and on energy.… Legault has essentially lost the centre player of his starting trio," Tanguay said.

Liberal MNA and chair of the National Assembly's committee on public administration Marwah Rizqy called for the energy bill to be removed without Fitzgibbon to debate its merits. 

"This bill can no longer go forward," Rizqy said. "Let's do things in order."

PQ MNA for Jean-Talon Pascal Paradis said the energy bill opens a path to the privatization of Hydro-Québec, the utility company that is currently a Crown corporation. Though Fitzgibbon has denied those claims, the bill does open a path for smaller electricity producers to sell to larger clients. 

Haroun Bouazzi, Québec Solidaire MNA for Maurice-Richard and party critic on the economy, energy and innovation, wrote on X that Fitzgibbon is leaving "at a particularly serious time when Northvolt is in trouble, the minister has been rapidly selling off all the available megawatts to foreign multinationals and the mega-energy bill is receiving criticism from all sides."

Major figure in government

Fitzgibbon was the subject of six ethics investigations related to contracts awarded to companies he had business ties with.

In early 2023, he was cleared of wrongdoing in one probe into a $24-million government investment into the parent company of lighting products maker Lumenpulse (LMPG).

Fitzgibbon, 69, has often been called a "super minister" of the Legault government, due to the importance of his portfolios and because he has been seen as a kind of architect of the Quebec economy.

He also co-ordinated the opening and closing of businesses amid COVID-19 health restrictions, starting in 2020.