Chevrolet Aveo

• As industry journal Automotive News put it:
  The electric vehicle revolution isn’t coming – it’s already here.
• US moves to adopt strict new vehicle emissions standards could drive up electric vehicle sales tenfold.
• There are bound to be flow-on effects in Australia, where the government is about to release a national electric vehicle strategy and new vehicle emission standards.

But what’s left of vehicle manufacturing?

• “All the bones are there,” said a former site operations manager at Holden’s Elizabeth plant in 2021.
• They have plans for a mixed-use future with some industry – but no specific plans for a return to making cars.
• The fragmented market issue could be overcome if the industry had an export focus, particularly for valuable vehicle parts.
• As for labour costs, plenty of electric vehicles – or their parts – are being made in other high-wage markets.

So what’s happening in the US?

• Many electric vehicles are made in factories that once made conventional vehicles, reviving parts of America’s “Rustbelt” in the process.
• While Elon Musk proclaims Tesla’s flagship plant in Fremont, California, to be the “factory of the future”, it is actually a former General Motors plant.
• In 2010, when Tesla took over the facility, it rehired many former workers.
• Since Tesla began production in June 2012, the same buildings have been used for a highly productive assembly line.
• “Everything is run down the same line, AV, EV, Sonic,” explained team leader Quentin Perea.
• There was a famous strike against increased line speeds in 1972, and the factory faced closure on several occasions.

Australia must act decisively

• Another recent Carmichael Centre report concluded Australia needs a “concerted, systematic industrial policy for EV manufacturing” to take advantage of the “enormous” and “exciting” opportunities.
• Australia has crucial advantages, especially as vehicle makers place high value on the availability of a workforce with industry experience.