Ontario gains $1.1B for selling last GM stake

• Ontario has sold its remaining interest in General Motors Co. and plans to invest the proceeds in infrastructure.

The Ontario government says it will gain approximately $1.1 billion from the sale, adding that the money will be invested to help build a “new generation” of public infrastructure.

Both Ottawa and the Ontario government acquired GM shares in 2009 after providing about $10.6 billion in aid to the automaker.

Ontario made $4.8 billion in financial assistance available to GM and Chrysler, in partnership with the federal government.

The provincial government says the gain on the sale of the shares exceeds the $900-million target included in the 2014 budget for 2014-15 net revenue gains from asset optimization.

Finance Minister Charles Sousa says Wednesday’s sale marks an important step in unlocking the value of the province’s assets to grow the economy and invest in public infrastructure.

“The Ontario government is proud to have been able to play an important role in protecting thousands of jobs across the province through its support of the auto sector in 2009,” Mr. Sousa said in a news release.

Ontario said last April that it planned to sell its GM stake over the next year or so.

If it weren’t for the recalls, 2014 would have been a stellar year for GM.

Even with $2.8 billion in pretax costs to fix more than 42 million recalled vehicles worldwide and $400 million set aside for death and injury claims, GM still managed to turn a $2.8-billion profit. It plans to raise the quarterly dividend.

GM shares rose 5.4% Wednesday. The gain could be the largest one-day increase since July 3, 2012, when the stock closed up 5.6%.