General Motors Holden announcement that it will build and export luxury vehicles to South Korea is being hailed as proof of a brighter future for Australia’s car industry.
Holden announced it was exporting the six cylinder Veritas, a luxury sedan based on the Holden Statesman, with 300 already sent to Korea.
The Daewoo Veritas V6 engine is being built at Holden’s plant in Port Melbourne and the vehicle will be assembled in Elizabeth, South Australia.
Holden recently announced it was axing around 500 jobs in Melbourne, but managing director, Mark Reuss, would not say whether the Korean export program would create any positions or what the deal was worth. Victoria’s Minister for Industry and Trade, Information and Communication Technology, and Major Projects Theo Theophanous also remained non-committal on job numbers.
"I think that's a question for the company itself but from an obvious common sense point of view, if there are vehicles that are being made which are currently not being exported, then there are jobs involved," Theophanous said.
"Now, whether that's about securing existing jobs or whether it's creating new jobs - there are jobs involved I can tell you."
The Veritas is aimed at a limited South Korean elite market, such as government and embassy officials, with 300 exported so far and will be sold through GM's Daewoo distributors.
"We believe it is programs like these that highlight just how important the automotive industry is to Australia," Reuss said.
"We are globally competitive and providing products that people want and desire, and that is why continued government support is also desirable."
With more than 3,000 car industry job cuts across Victoria and South Australia in just over a year, Theophanous was keen to talk up the industry's export future.
He said the move was "the start of something significant" adding that all car makers would have to start boosting export targets.
Federal Trade Minister Simon Crean said the government was working to reduce overseas tariffs to boost car exports.
He said this was where manufacturers should be looking "because that's where our future lies".
"I think if we can get a solid basis on which the industry can invest securely and confidently for the future, we will not only see the security of jobs in this sector, we can even look to growth in the sector," Crean said.
The Republic of South Korea is Australia's sixth largest trading partner and fourth largest export market.
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