Industry News
News for 2nd April 2007
DfT: UK company car parc shrank 1% in 2006
The Department for Transport published National Statistics of on the stock of licensed vehicles in Great Britain in 2006 on 30 March. The total number of motor vehicles licensed at the end of 2006 was 1.4% higher than at the end of 2005, at 33.4 million. There were increases in currently licensed vehicles for all body types, with the exception of company cars, where there was a decrease of 1.0% from 2005 to 2006.
Changes from 2005 to 2006 in the stock of licensed vehicles include:
- The number of cars licensed increased by 1.1%;
- The number of company cars licensed decreased by 1.0%;
- The number of light goods vehicles licensed increased by 4.0%;
- The number of motor cycles, scooters and mopeds licensed increased by 1.5 per cent.
- The number of heavy goods vehicles licensed increased by 0.6 per cent.
The number of vehicles registered for the first time during 2006 was 3.6% lower than in 2005. With the exception of taxis there were decreases in first time registrations for all body types.
Changes from 2005 to 2006 in the number of vehicles being registered for the first time include:
- The number of cars registered for the first time decreased by 4.2%;
- The number of company cars registered for the first time decreased by 3.2%;
- The number of light goods vehicles registered for the first time was relatively unchanged, decreasing by 0.4%;
- The number of motor cycles, scooters and mopeds registered for the first time was also relatively unchanged, decreasing by 0.3%;
- The number of heavy goods vehicles registered for the first time decreased by 2.3%.
The statistics are available at:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/statistics/datatablespublications/vehicles/licensing/vehiclelicensingstatrelease2006
GM Europe increases capacity investment in new St Petersburg assembly plant to $300m
The Novosti news agency reported this morning that General Motors will invest $300 million in the new car assembly plant near St. Petersburg that it launched in June 2006. The plant is due to reach its full capacity in 2008, when assembly of the Chevrolet Captiva and other models will be launched there. Earlier, GM had indicated its investment in the plant, initially planned to produce 25,000 units annually, would be just $115 million, but on March 29, GM Europe President, Carl-Peter Forster announced that GM would more than double its originally planned capacity to 70,000.
"Russia is our biggest market for Chevrolet in Europe," said Mr. Forster. "Demand continues to grow, and we will be in an even better position to meet that demand when Shushary goes on stream in 2008." In 2006, GM sold more than 132,000 cars on the Russian market, 84% of which were Chevrolets. In the first two months of 2007 the company sold almost 26,000 GM cars in Russia, including more than 20,000 Chevrolets.
Elsewhere in Europe, GM does not exclude further reductions in manufacturing personnel, though Mr. Forster described the possible closure of a plant as an ‘extreme solution’. GM Europe lost $225m after exceptional costs last year on turnover up 4% year on year of $33.2bn; before exceptional items, trading profit was $227m. Having stripped out some $2bn of fixed costs under its current restructuring plan, GM Europe is focusing more on raising sales volume at present.
The decision on which plants will build the next Astra models (on which hangs the future of the Ellesmere Port plant) is likely to be made before the end of this year, according to several financial media reports of 30 March, which also reported Mr. Forster saying that some Saab 9-5 model production would be moved to the Rüsselsheim Opel plant from Trollhëttan in Sweden.
(Novosti, 2 April, Wall St Journal, 30 March)
Ford to pilot new work organisation at Spanish plant
A report in the Spanish paper El Mundo’s 30 March edition says Ford’s Almusafes assembly plant will be the first in Europe to deploy a flexible working time system whereby management and unions have agreed that four days a year will be set aside, during which the factory will remain open or not according to the work load available. In place of temporary layoffs, staff will be put on paid leave in the event of production being halted, or alternatively, extra shifts may be added in case of need.
The principle behind the scheme is to introduce more flexibility in handling volume fluctuations without either temporary layoffs or overtime working.
Ford is expected to decide on planned volumes for each of its European plants this spring, decisions being partly subject to its success in bidding for Romania’s former Daewoo factory in Olcit, reportedly against GM, Tata Motors and Chery. Meanwhile the Almusafes plant is thought likely to share assembly of the current Focus’ replacement due for launch next year with the Sarrelouis plant in Germany.
Ford last week was reported to have decided to close its Leamington Spa brake parts foundry and to shift its production to Eastern Europe.
TGWU members vote for strike action at Aston Martin
Just after Ford Motor Co. accepted an offer for Aston Martin from investors backing Prodrive, members of the Transport and General Workers Union at the company’s Gaydon plant voted on 30 March in favour of strike action, rejecting a two-year pay offer.
Seventy per cent voted in favour of strike action and 76% in favour of action short of a strike. A total of 518 of the union's 656 voted. The two-year deal offered by the company was worth 4% in year 1 and inflation + 0.5% in year 2, plus a 'merit' payment worth an average of 2.25%.
There are said to be pay differentials of up to £2,500 between workers doing the same jobs at Aston Martin.
"The negotiations that took place previously were very difficult, and conducted whilst the sale of the company was imminent. The agreement that was finally struck did not, in the members' view, remove deep-seated and inherent problems with the current grading structure," said Des Quinn, T&G regional industrial organiser.
"Whilst there are other outstanding issues that needed to be addressed, we believe they can be resolved by negotiation. In light of the overwhelming ballot result will be meeting with shop stewards and members to determine next course of action, one of which will include urging the company to meet with us again to resolve the important issues in dispute."
Amicus members represented at Aston Martin are also being balloted and their result is expected this Thursday. The two unions are due to merge on 1 May.
(www.autowired.co.uk, 2 April
Transport Secretary calls for medium-term 100 g/km car CO2 target
Speaking at a conference in London, Transport Secretary Douglas Alexander said last week that Britain must look at ways to ensure that by 2030, UK cars that emit zero, or very
little, carbon become commonplace, and, echoing some EU environment ministers, added that the UK should aim at a medium term target of 100g of carbon emitted per kilometre per car.
(www.dft.gov.uk/press/speechesstatements/speeches/ipprtransportclimatechange?versi
on=2
Reported failure of Proton-VW talks hits Proton share price
Last week the Malaysian news agency Bernama reported that the Malaysian government had failed to reach a decision on potential partners for the state-controlled Proton car maker and Lotus Group owner, and the Straits Times later suggested that one possible reason for the delay – talks with Volkswagen – had failed to produce an agreed deal. VW reportedly decided that the establishment of a local production facility at Proton’s plant was not a sufficiently high priority, compared with expansion under way in India and Russia. Proton shares reportedly dropped 6% in trading after the news came out.
Kia Motors will be biggest beneficiary of Korea-U.S. free trade agreement
Korea and the United States reached a free trade agreement today, after nearly 10 months of negotiations. The Korean automotive manufacturing sector is expected to be among the biggest beneficiaries, and Kia Motors the biggest beneficiary of U.S. import tariff elimination within the sector.
Seo Seong-moon, an analyst at Korea Investment & Securities told the Korea Herald that "Hyundai's U.S. sales portion is 14.9% on a unit basis, while the figure for Kia reached 29.1% last year." The U.S. will immediately remove its 2.5% tariff on Korean cars below 3,000cc. Tariffs will be phased out during the next three years on vehicles over 3,000cc.
Vehicles account for about 25% of annual Korean exports to the U.S. Last year, Korea sold 700,000 cars in the U.S. while only 4,000 U.S. vehicles were sold in Korea.
- The BBC reported today that one Korean protester set fire to himself close to the Seoul hotel where the talks have been taking place, while an number of opposition politicians have gone on hunger strike in protest at the new settlement.
(Korea Herald, BBC, 2 April)
New vice president of design for Nissan Europe
Alfonso E. Albaisa has been appointed vice president of Nissan Design Europe (NDE), headquartered in London, with immediate effect. He replaces Satoru Tai, who will return to Japan. The 42-year-old Cuban-American will head a team of more than 50, and will report directly to Shiro Nakamura, president of Nissan Design Europe and chief creative officer and senior vice president of Nissan Motor Co.
Mr. Albaisa has been based at Nissan's design centre in Japan where he has been product chief designer for a new compact car programme, but started his career with the company at Nissan Design America (NDA) in 1988.
New after sales director appointed at Citroën UK
Citroën UK has announced the appointment of Stuart Hodge as the company’s new after sales director with effect from 2 April 2007. He joins Citroën from Volkswagen UK where he held the position of head of after sales and customer services for the commercial vehicle operation. The current Citroën after sales director, José Antonio Lopez, will be returning to Citroën Spain.
Greenergy biodiesel plant begins commercial production
Greenergy's biodiesel plant in north-east England began commercial production on Friday 30 March, and should ramp up to full capacity of 100,000 tonnes/year in a couple of weeks, according to the company. The plant refines biodiesel from rapeseed oil, palm oil and soya oil. Chief Executive Robert Owens told Reuters that the second phase, which should take capacity to 200,000 tonnes is on schedule to be completed in November.
Mr Owens said Greenergy was comfortable with current margins on biodiesel production, unlike rivals Biofuels Corp plc and D1 Oils, which are reported to use more expensive refined vegetable oils as feedstocks than Greenergy, which may use as much as 10% of the UK’s total rapeseed crop.
A rival Spanish bioenergy plant, Abengoa, recently announced its own plans for a new, larger, biodiesel refining plant at Immingham, which already hosts two conventional oil refineries.
Mr. Owens said Greenergy is now looking at a further three biodiesel projects, one in Britain and two outside Europe, but cast doubt on the viability of bioethanol production in Europe, where energy efficiency using wheat could reach only 20% compared to 80% for Brazilian sugar cane production. Scientists were reported today by the BBC to have judged that the EU and national governments’ biofuels usage targets were ‘ahead of the science’ and could ultimately be responsible for degradation of the global environment.
Toyota considers fresh investment in Kentucky plant as UAW complains of HR practices
As Toyota announced last week that it is considering whether to invest $413m in building an extra model line at its Georgetown, Ky., Camry assembly plant, the United Auto Workers union attempted afresh to secure representation at the 500,000 units-a-year plant, having succeeded so far in doing so at only one of Toyota’s North American facilities.
While Toyota announced that is was considering whether to invest $413m in building an extra model line at its Georgetown, Ky., Camry assembly plant, the United Auto Workers union is attempting to secure representation at the 500,000 units-a-year plant, having succeeded so far in doing so at only one of Toyota’s North American facilities.
On Saturday 31 March, the UAW held a town hall meeting near the Georgetown plant aimed at outlining the human cost of Toyota's success in the U.S. The UAW plans to have some Toyota hourly workers speak on poor working conditions in the plant as a way to promote the need for unions.
The UAW issued a release saying, “Toyota is a huge corporate success story, but fails at health and safety, relies heavily on low-paid temporary workers, and has a plan to reduce wages and benefits, workers at its Georgetown plant.”
(www.uaw.org)
DaimlerChrysler welcomes U.S. EPA diesel standards
Dr. Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of the Board of Management DaimlerChrysler and head of the Mercedes Car Group, issued a statement on 29 March welcoming the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's announcement last week on selective catalytic reduction (SCR) diesel guidelines:
"Mercedes-Benz welcomes and supports the EPA's announcement on Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) guidelines, which represent a critical next step for the future acceptance of diesel vehicles in the U.S. market. This decision, teamed with the Agency's recent mandate for Ultra Low Sulphur Diesel (ULSD) fuel availability, serves to reinforce diesel's benefit as a viable alternative to help reduce fuel consumption and ultimately, reduce oil imports."
Mercedes-Benz currently offers four ‘clean diesel’ models in the U.S. market, including the E320 BLUETEC, equipped with a urea-based SCR system. Mercedes’ BLUETEC SUVs, using a technology to be shared by rivals BMW and VW in the U.S. market, are set to be the world's first diesel vehicles to meet the Environmental Protection Agency's BIN5 emissions standards for all 50 U.S. states.
Johnson Controls signs licensing agreement with Federal-Mogul to market Champion(R) batteries
Federal-Mogul Corporation and Johnson Controls Inc. have signed an agreement to market Federal-Mogul's Champion(R) brand in the lead-acid storage battery category. Johnson Controls, the world's largest automotive battery maker, will introduce a full line of Champion branded automotive, marine, commercial, utility and motorcycle batteries to automotive aftermarket in April.
New president for France’s automotive manufacturers' association
A former civil servant and diplomat, Xavier Fels, has been named as the new president of the Comite des Constructeurs d’Automobiles Francais (CCFA), succeeding Manuel Gomez. Mr Fels joined from PSA Peugeot Citroën, where he has been director of external relations. Luc Bastard, in charge of environmental and external affairs at Renault, has been elected as the CCFA’s vice-president.
Welsh car supermarket closes outlets
The Cars4U supermarket group, founded in 2002, is believed to be in trouble, according to Autowired, which reported today that the group had closed its outlets in Treforest, Caerphilly (where it trades as Autosave) and Cardiff on 30 March, “until further notice”.
Cars4U managing director Franco Gallo was a director of Ken Thorne Car Sales, which went into receivership nearly five years ago. Cars4U is believed to have employed 50 people since opening in 2002.
Another car supermarket group, Carshock, based in the North East, went into receivership last month after two finance providers withdrew support.
(www.autowired.co.uk)
Renault UK press officer sues for constructive dismissal over ‘faulty’ bonnet catches
Former press relations manager of Renault UK Graeme Holt has told the BBC’s Watchdog programme that the company was "running away from its responsibilities" towards as many as 1,000 Clio owners who have experienced bonnet-catch failures, reported the Daily Telegraph on 31 March.
Graeme Holt, claimed the company knew there was a design problem with bonnet catches on as many as 550,000 Renault Clio II models sold between 1998 and 2006.
Holt, who was due to leave Renault in two months, was forced to leave early after reporting the problem to Renault president Carlos Ghosn, and was then suspended for doing so by the UK managing director, according to the Telegraph. He is suing the company for constructive dismissal.
(Daily Telegraph, 31 March)
