State trade fact sheets - Arizona

Employing & Investing in Arizona

Over 17,000 Arizonans are employed by over 160 Canadian-owned businesses operating across the Grand Canyon State. Canadians are not only the largest foreign direct investors and employers in Arizona, but Canada and Arizona also engage in $4.1 billion worth of trade annually. A wide range of Canadian companies have set up shop across Arizona due to its business-friendly climate. Leading retail brands like Aldo, Coldstone Creamery and Circle K; top service providers like Stantec and BMO Harris Bank; and telecommunication sector leaders like Mitel and Inter Tel Technologies all originally hail from Canada. Canada considers its relationship with Arizona among its most important in the U.S. A million Canadian visitors spend upwards of $1 billion in Arizona each year. Over 10,000 Snowbirds like Arizona so much they choose to make it their home away from home during winter months. Canadians comprise the largest group of foreign home-owners in the Grand Canyon state — 97% of all international residents in the Greater Phoenix area alone.

Canada-Arizona in Flight

As the numbers of Snowbird visitors and residents continue to climb, so do the number of flights between Arizona and Canada. Major airlines WestJet and Air Canada have regular operations out of Arizona’s international airports and bring in over 250,000 passengers a year to the Phoenix area alone. The newest airline adding routes to Arizona is the low-fare Canadian airline, Swoop.

With in-state operations dating back to 1976, Bombardier employs 300 highly-skilled workers at its business aircraft service center in Tucson. In 2020, the company spent $200 million with local suppliers. CAE Phoenix’s simulator-based training facility, adjacent to Sky Harbor International Airport, is equipped with over 80 aircrafts to support pilots. Magellan Aerospace operates two facilities employing over 200 Arizonans. Magellan Glendale specializes in the manufacture of commercial and military aircraft components. Magellan’s second facility, Euravia North America, is a modern maintenance, repair and overhaul facility for high quality aircraft high gas turbine engines and components. Together, in collaboration with the Canadian Space Agency, ASU’s MILO Space Science Institute will be launching Canada’s first Space Payload Accelerator, to assist Canadian organizations looking to accelerate their space capabilities out of Arizona.

Driving into a Sustainable Future

Arizona is rapidly turning into an electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing hub with the help of sector leader companies from Canada investing in, creating new jobs, and moving their operations to The Grand Canyon State. The integration of EVs brings substantial changes in shifting economies from petroleum and reducing CO₂ emission from the transportation sector. Canadian companies are paving the way for a sustainable future in Arizona. APEL Extrusions has purchased 22.6 acres of land in Phoenix as the future site of their headquarters and an aluminum manufacturing facility. 200 new jobs will be available to Arizonans to help create quality aluminum products with short lead times and at competitive prices. Li-Cycle is building a facility capable of processing up to 10,000 tonnes of end-of-life batteries and battery manufacturing scrap per year in Gilbert. ElectraMeccanica is building an engineering technical center and manufacturing facility in Mesa. When its U.S. base of operations is fully operational, 500 Arizonans will be employed to produce 20,000 three-wheeled, one-seat EVs per year for the U.S. market. Also choosing Mesa is Exro Technologies which will create 50 new jobs to expand the capabilities of electric motors, generators and batteries.