Dumping ground? Doubt it!

MAZDA Australia managing director Vinesh Bhindi has cast doubt over reports that Australia is becoming a ‘dumping ground’ for unwanted battery electric vehicles (BEV) from China as the brand prepares to introduce more of its own electrified models to this market.

Speaking at last week’s media launch of the new CX-70 and CX-80 large SUVs, Mr Bhindi said he does not see the logic in commentary about Australia being flooded by waves of undesirable vehicles from China as other major markets impose heavy tariffs on them.

“I don't know how that works, because in my mind, that's people speculating – unless I have missed something – but they need to talk with evidence to throw those lines out. That's the easy part,” said Mr Bhindi.

“In the end, Australia doesn't have a manufacturing base. It's all based on imports, and based on businesses coming to market and seeking a return.”

However, Mr Bhindi did confirm that following the demise of the slow-selling MX-30 (and even slower-selling BEV variant), Mazda Australia will resume offering BEV models, with “multiple battery EVs on offer” before the end of this decade.

Among the BEVs speculated for Australia are the EZ-6 medium sedan and a medium SUV based on the Arata concept, the former already produced in China via Mazda’s joint venture with Changan and sharing a platform with the Deepal S07 that recently debuted in Australia.

With battery electric versions claimed to deliver 600km on a charge and a plug-in hybrid (PHEV) extending that to more than 1000km, the EZ6 could provide Mazda Australia with a successor to the ancient Mazda 6 and help the brand comply with the federal government’s new vehicle efficiency standard (NVES) that aims to lower fleet emissions from next year.

The production Arata is also likely to be assembled by Changan Mazda in China given it was revealed alongside the EZ-6 at the Beijing motor show in April this year.

Speculation that the Arata could replace the ageing CX-5 has been given weight by Mazda’s recent trademark filing for the CX-6e nameplate in Europe but Mr Bhindi declined to comment further on Mazda Australia’s BEV model plans.

“The legislators have brought in their legislation – it's a mechanism that works in the market that in the end, the objective is to reduce carbon,” he said.

“But this is a transition. This is always going to be a transition, a transition that other regions have started a number of years ago, but we are about to commence that journey.”

“That will take a few years. Is it three years? Five years? 10 years? That's the bit we are figuring out but Mazda will have battery EVs before 2030, multiple battery EVs on offer.”

While Mazda goes through this process, Australia will see new vehicles and brands arriving in droves.

Some of the newcomers include Zeekr with the Zeekr X compact electric SUV and luxury-focused 009 people-mover, Stellantis-owned brand Leapmotor with the C10 medium SUV that starts below $50K, Changan’s brand Deepal with the new $53,900 S07 medium SUV, Xpeng with the circa-$54K G6 midsize SUV, and soon enough Geely will also set up shop with the EX5 as its first offering – another midsize SUV.

But Mr Bhindi cautioned that Australia’s small population could only provide a limited number of customers for these new arrivals.

“There's a certain amount of buyers, a certain amount of sales we'll achieve in the market, and it's not huge for the number of brands that are fighting for it,” he said.

“So if they're not making a return out of it, then they must have other reasons to do it. Those reasons, they're the only ones who can explain.

“I don't subscribe to the 'dumping' in Australia. In the end, it's inventory sitting here, unless a consumer wants it. The journey just comes to grinding halt,” said Mr Bhindi, intimating that it would also be an extremely costly exercise to fail in Australia.

He was also cautious about putting the cart before the horse in terms of Australia’s readiness for mainstream customers to have a positive BEV experience.

“Battery EV will mature as the roll out of charging infrastructure becomes, or gains more cadence, then also the renewable energy generation advances. That's the infrastructure part of it,” said Mr Bhindi.

“But the most critical piece is that the consumer gets confidence that the vehicle is the right one for them; it's fit for purpose for whatever they're buying it for, whether it's a daily run-around, or it's a ute that tows tonnes or payload, etc – that's the transition piece.”

On the subject of choice, Mr Bhindi welcomed the competition aspect of new brands attempting to stake their claim on a slice of the Australian market.

“From my point of view, more brands only means more choices for consumers,” he said.

“So the consumers will decide whether a brand remains or doesn't remain, purely from a commercial perspective, right? 

“And if they're not engaged with the products that a brand brings – and let's not forget, in the last 20 years, there's been a number of brands who have come and gone multiple times – so entry into the market and exit is not as difficult because we don't have a manufacturing base.

“From the way I look at it, if consumers get lots of choice that's a good thing, and usually that drives competition, and competition then drives innovation, and nothing in that is a bad thing.”