Canada, U.S. contradict each other on financial terms of Gordie Howe Bridge deal

The Gordie Howe International Bridge shown from Windsor, Ontario in June 2026. Photo by Dan Janisse /WIndsor Star

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The US and Canada are presenting different accounts of a profit-sharing deal President Donald Trump agreed to that permits a new bridge connecting Michigan and Ontario to open later this month.

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The White House and the government of Prime Minister Mark Carney last Friday announced an agreement to open the Gordie Howe International Bridge after the US delayed it. Canada will fund a regional development agency by sharing a portion of net toll profits from bridge traffic, which Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick had been seeking.

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Since then, however, both governments have offered only limited details that have painted different pictures of the terms.

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The Gordie Howe International Bridge seen from Windsor, Ont., on Monday, July 13, 2026. Photo by Dan Janisse/Windsor Star/Postmedia

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Carney told a Canadian television network that debt costs would be factored into the calculation of the bridge’s profit. That’s important because Canada paid the entire C$6.4 billion ($4.6 billion) construction cost. Annual interest on that amount would be hundreds of millions of Canadian dollars. Deducting interest would reduce the profit and, therefore, the US share.

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“We are sharing after Canada is paid back. So we get the revenues, then the servicing of the cost of the bridge and paying the debt of the bridge. And then what’s left over, there’s a split of that for 15 years,” the prime minister told CTV News on July 12.

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A US official, however, contradicted Carney’s account and said that neither loan interest nor depreciation would be included in the calculation. That view suggests fewer expenses to offset the revenue and, thus, a larger share for the US. The official spoke on condition they not be identified discussing private matters.

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At this point, there’s no sign the discrepancy will jeopardize the bridge’s planned opening on July 27.

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U.S. President Donald Trump speaks with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney at a working lunch with leaders of G7 and the Middle East, on June 16, 2026 in Evian-les-Bains, France. Photo by Pool /Getty Images

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On Tuesday, Carney’s spokesperson, Audrey Champoux, did not provide a specific answer when asked to clarify whether debt service costs are deducted before the US share of toll profits is calculated.

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“Canada and the United States agreed upon half of net profits being directed to the economic development fund for a period of 15 years, creating an incentive for both countries to make the bridge profitable,” she said, adding: “As the prime minister said, we expect these net profits to be a small portion of total bridge revenue.”

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A spokesman for the US Commerce Department, Benno Kass, said the US is “pleased to have reached an agreement with Canada on the Gordie Howe International Bridge that ensures the United States will participate in setting tolls and receive an equal share of net bridge revenues.”

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Neither country has published the text of the deal. Champoux said that “officials in both countries are working to finalize the specific legal and administrative details of this arrangement.”

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The Gordie Howe International Bridge viewed from downstream along the Detroit River, Oct. 25, 2025. Photo by Doug Schmidt/Postmedia

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The bridge, which connects Detroit with the industrial heartland of the province of Ontario, became another flashpoint between the two countries after Lutnick intervened to stop a planned opening last month. Its development was years in the making. Yet to make it a reality, Canada agreed to finance it upfront.