Cruzing to profit

Holden Chairman and CEO Mike Devereux has confirmed Holden will announce a profit for 2010. The key note speaker at today’s meeting of the American Chamber of Commerce in Melbourne, Devereux also took the opportunity to highlight Holden's local production timetable for Cruze and update the company's US Police Car export program.

Holden reports on the US fiscal year, which aligns with a normal calendar year. Down Under only since April 2010, Devereux will have the pleasure of announcing Holden's first profit for six years. When the GM subsidiary announces in April or May 2011, he says 2010 will be in the black.

Devereux outlined GM's growing success in China. The US stalwart was the first international company to sell a million cars in the burgeoning market. This year it has already become the first to sell more than two million cars in a calendar year. This is, Devereux said, more cars than GM sells in the USA.

In describing the success of GM in China he added: "Holden, which for many years was the driving force in GM's Asia Pacific region, has also turned the corner. I look forward to reporting a profit for the first time in six years when we release our 2010 annual results."

"This is a very, very huge result [for Holden]," he stated.

Devereux says the turn around, combined with the commencement of local production of the Cruze small car has cemented Holden's future Down Under.

"Eighteen months ago that future was not secure. It is today," he stated candidly.

Devereux confirmed local production of the Cruze sedan would commence in earnest in February or March 2011. The first Australian-designed Cruze hatches will go down the line in the second half of 2011. Though he would not elaborate, he says locally produced Cruzes will offer both petrol and diesel powertrain options.

An animated Holden boss was bullish about the progress of Holden's plans to export Commodore/Caprice based police cars to the USA. Though he says the business plan was based on an Australian dollar "15-25 cents lower" than today's near-parity level, he still expects volume to be in the "thousands and thousands".

Volume of the new Caprice-based US market police car is the "icing on the cake" Devereux says, but "not in the cake mix".

He says the rollout of the police car production will see Holden hiring more staff for its Elizabeth (SA) plant. It is only recently the operation returned to two shifts and full-time employment for its existing workforce.

Production of 'detective' versions of the Chevrolet Caprice Police Patrol Vehicle commence in January, says Devereux. Holden holds around 150 initial orders for the low-volume variant.

Specific volumes for the police cruiser version (pictured) have not been announced yet.

"Chevrolet is in the middle of a 20-city ride and drive test program agencies across the US. Five of the 20 cities have been completed and we're taking a small group of Australian media to the US to actually experience one of these programs," Devereux explained.

"Already we know, not just by our own estimates, but from the official comparative testing that we have the superior product. We have completed our competitive testing with the Michigan State and LAPD and Sheriff Departments and we expect these results in the first quarter.

States such as California, Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Idaho, Maryland, Michigan and North Carolina are all tendering with us now and we are getting orders as we speak," he stated.

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