Nissan’s manufacturing facility in Australia appear to have a strong future – courtesy of a focus on electric and hybrid vehicle parts – despite recent plans to shut seven of the automaker’s factories.
Speaking to media at the Dandenong plant in southeast Melbourne, which opened in 1982, Nissan Oceania Vice President and Managing Director Andrew Humberstone was upbeat about the factory’s future.
It comes as the automaker’s global cost-cutting drive saw it announce the closure of seven yet-to-be-determined factories globally by 2027 from the 17 it currently operates.
The Australian plant has yet to be officially confirmed as ongoing – despite a $4.2 million investment in 2024 as well as the critical role its 192 staff play in supplying Nissan and Renault parts globally.
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“I can’t comment to that degree,” Mr Humberstone said when asked if the Dandenong site’s future had been confirmed by its Japan head office – with only the Sunderland, UK, factory where the Nissan Qashqai SUV is made seemingly safe from closure so far.
“What I can say is we’ll be manufacturing Y63 [Patrol] parts as well as some of the newer electrified vehicles and models from here as well, which are products of the future. I think that speaks volumes.
“I’m quietly optimistic that we’ll continue to provide those components.”
The current Y62 Patrol – which the Dandenong plant provides parts for – has been in showrooms for more than a decade, with the supply of Y63 parts for global export a potential sign of long-term prospects.
The plant has existing contracts for both Australian and export customers lasting beyond 2035.
Yet the factory’s move towards producing high-value components for hybrid and electric vehicles has added even more importance to the site’s role – and given it an edge that may future-proof the plant for decades.
Around 77 per cent of the plant’s production – in terms of sales value – is now electric or hybrid related, compared to only around 54 per cent in 2021.
“We positioned ourselves to be specialists,” Peter Erhardt, the plant’s energy and environmental coordinator, told CarExpert.
The Dandenong plant can ‘simultaneously design’ and components and their manufacturing processes in collaboration with Nissan global design and engineering teams – or external customers.
It then turns concepts into prototypes and tests parts before beginning mass-production, reducing time, cost and complexity.
The automaker’s global appetite for EV and hybrid components is only set to grow.
Nissan has confirmed the new third generation Leaf EV will go on sale in Australia in 2026, made alongside the Qashqai e-Power SUV and an electric Micra hatchback in the UK – while it’s also working on a raft of electric models which could include a ute.
Both Mr Erhardt and Mr Humberstone were speaking at the official confirmation of the plant’s ‘Australian-made’ certification, which requires a company to meet specific local manufacturing criteria to be able to make the claim.
The automaker said the fee – which it would not confirm but based on the Australian Made website is around $25,000 annually – is well worth it.
“Now we’ve got this Australian Made [certification], it lands a very strong message to the consumer on the back of what we’re doing from a sales and marketing point of view, which is around building the brand,” said Mr Humberstone.
“Our creatives for advertising are done locally, at the back end what we’re doing in terms of the [Nissan-owned] finance company, and what we’re doing in terms of the 10-year/300,000km warranty.
“I think it cements and adds value. And it’s authentic in the narrative we’re talking to consumers about.”
