Exclusive: PSA boss backs Holden deal

PSA Group boss Carlos Tavares has declared Opel will continue to sell vehicles to Holden as long as the General Motors division wants to buy them.

He also confirmed the current Opel product plan for the next five to six years won’t be cut but may be added to by PSA Group, meaning that additional models Holden had lined up for import in the next few years would likely still be available.

But more forebodingly, Tavares has also admitted the possibility of eventually returning the Opel brand to Australia as a competitor for Holden.

PSA’s CEO was speaking overnight at the Geneva auto show to motoring.com.au a little more than 24 hours after the intended sale of Opel and Vauxhall by GM to the French PSA Group was announced in Paris.

Buying Opel means PSA, which also comprises the Peugeot, Citroen and DS brands, will own the rights to two key Holden imports, the Astra hatchback and latest Insignia large sedan, which will be sold in Australia from 2018 rebadged as the Commodore.

The 2017 Opel/Vauxhall Insignia Grand Sport liftback and Grand Tourer wagon made their world debuts in the Swiss capital overnight, when Holden also revealed its rebadged version of the latter, to be known as the 2018 Commodore Sportwagon.

“As long as they [Holden] want to buy cars from us we are very fine with that,” Tavares said. “If we can stay a long-term supplier of those cars we are fine with that, so that is a question for GM.

Tavares also addressed a rumour that Holden had been offered to PSA as part of the Opel-Vauxhall purchase.

“No, Holden is a brand that belongs to General Motors and we are supplying some cars to Holden from the manufacturing footprint of Opel-Vauxhall.

“So we will just try to continue to make as many deals was we can with General Motors on this supply and if they are happy with this supply we will continue as much as they want.

“But the plan belongs to General Motors.”

The sale rumour had earlier been rejected by GM president Dan Ammann when speaking to Australian journalists at the show. Ammann also confirmed that Opel would continue to supply Astra and Insignia/Commodore to Holden while they stayed on GM architectures.

When those models migrate to PSA architectures, something that is not expected to happen for five to seven years, the picture is less certain.

One thing that is known is that once Opel vehicles have moved to PSA architectures the brand will be free to export globally. Nowadays it is kept out of lucrative markets such as the USA and China by GM. It had an unsuccessful crack at Australia in 2012-2013.

But Tavares was clear another Australian bid by Opel would be considered in the right circumstances, even if it was still supplying vehicles to Holden.

“At this stage we don’t exclude any opportunity that could be considered,” Tavares said. “But it is important to be fair with our people, not just to say ‘guys you have big overseas opportunities’.

“We also need to say ‘yes we have these opportunities and we are going to lift the gates’ but be careful, the business plans need to pencil (stet). For the business plans to pencil we need to be very cost-competitive and have super quality and the appropriate specs to meet the expectations of those local customers.”

Opel has confirmed a plan to launch 29 models between 2016 and 2020, including additions to the Astra and Insignia ranges and a crossover seven-seater that GM boss Mary Barra announced in 2014 would be based on the Insignia’s E2 architecture and built alongside it in Russelsheim, Germany.

Holden has targeted these vehicles for local sale and Tavares' clear statement that Opel’s product rollout will stay intact and be potentially enhanced will be greeted happily at Fishermens Bend.

“I had a meeting yesterday with the president of the Opel dealers association … and what I am going to tell you here is what I told him yesterday,” said Tavares. “First, he should be reassured that we are going to protect the current Opel-Vauxhall product plan.

“Why? Because it is in our interests to do so. We want to protect the presence of Opel and Vauxhall in the European market.

“Secondly, they will have access to all the clean powertrains of PSA; electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid vehicles. So of course we will give Opel and Vauxhall the full capability to go electric if it is needed, that is also something that is good.

“Generally speaking in any car company the product plan is around five to six years and so far that is what we are seeing out to 2023-24. We see clear what we will do.

“By the way, it’s not what we think, it is what the Opel team thinks and we support that. It makes sense.”