Dumarey bid: Could Ute and V8 continue as Holdens?

Holden could continue to sell the Ute and V8 models based on the current Commodore in local showrooms beyond 2017 if parent General Motors agrees to a bid by Belgian entrepreneur Guido Dumarey to take over the Elizabeth plant and the locally-developed Zeta architecture.

That possibility emerged during a press conference held by South Australian independent Senator Nick Xenophon yesterday afternoon in Canberra. Xenophon also hinted abut a continuation of exports to other GM divisions from Elizabeth under Dumarey.

Xenophon is Dumarey’s closest political ally in his campaign to acquire Elizabeth and Zeta and develop a range of models for local sale and export.

While its unknown if the contracting plan has been put by Dumarey to GM, Xenophon knows as much about Project Erich – as the business plan is dubbed - as anyone outside the Punch Corporation.

General Motors announced in late 2013 that Elizabeth would close at the end of 2017 and the locally-designed and developed Commodore would be killed off.

Dumarey and Punch exec Marc Maes have been in Australia all week meeting various government figures, including Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and his industry minister Christopher Pyne and South Australian Premier Jay Weatheill and his automotive transformation minister Kyam Maher.

All parties involved in the potential deal agree it will either stand or fall by around mid-year.

“It (the Dumarey plan) will mean potentially – if General Motors was interested – for cars to be sold under the GM brand made here in Australia,” Xenophon said.

“That would be good for GM’s corporate reputation here – still having Australian made cars even if it is made under contract.

“That is not unprecedented with major car manufacturers.”

Previously, Dumarey’s few public pronouncements had centred around the development of premium and commercial model ranges which would be sold under a new name and new dealer network.

Continuing to build the Ute for Holden would make sense, as there is no direct replacement for it planned as part of the company’s post-2017 import line-up.

The current Commodore, however, will be replaced by an import based on the next-gen Opel Insignia.

But as that car will be front and all-wheel drive with four-cylinder and V6 engines, that could also potentially leave room for a V8 SS sedan to be built for Holden at Elizabeth. V8s now account for more than 30 per cent of Commodore sales and are expected to rise as high as 50 per cent in 2017.

A continuation of Zeta-based V8 production would also be great news for Holden Special Vehicles and its owner, the Walkinshaw Group, which has made a tidy business out of hotted-up Commodores for than 25 years.

In terms of export, Holden currently provides the Commodore V8 to Chevrolet as the SS and the long wheelbase Caprice as a police car (PPV).

Contract work would add potential throughput to the Elizabeth assembly line and bolster a project that even Dumarey admits will be a long-shot to pull together.

While Xenophon was dropping hints about Dumarey’s business plan, the main thrust of his presser was to call for strong support across the political spectrum for the Punch bid.

Weatherill was his target after the South Australian Premier admitted only “lukewarm” support for the Punch proposal yesterday and warned that “false hopes” should not be raised by it for the jobs of automotive workers.

“There are some who say you should not give people false hope with this proposal and of course that is right,” Xenophon said.

“But nor should our political leaders curl up in the corner and give up.

“All I ask of the South Australian government is they show the same level of enthusiasm and support that the Prime Minister, the industry minister, the federal opposition leader (Bill Shorten) and the federal shadow industry minister (Kim Carr) have shown for the Punch proposal.

“We need to speak with a united voice so General Motors in Detroit knows that Australia wants this proposal to proceed. It will be a win-win for General Motors and this country to keep car-making going.”

Xenophon also said it was important that General Motors take the Dumarey proposal seriously.

“General Motors has received something like $2.17 billion of Australian taxpayer funds in subsidies over a 12 year period. I have no problem with that, but what I think is important is GM negotiates in good faith with all parties.

“I am not saying they haven’t but I am saying GM has a great opportunity here that it could be a win-win for them, Punch and the most importantly the people of Australia.”