Author: Stephen Johnson, Economic Correspondent, "Daily Mail", Australia
Published: December 7, 2021 at 09:18 EDT | Updated: December 9, 2021 at 23:12 EDT
Over the past ten years, Australia has stopped manufacturing cars and started importing defective foreign-made trams and ferries—now no longer producing the key fuel components needed to keep trucks running.
The urea needed to start the diesel engine will soon no longer be produced by a factory in Brisbane, forcing Australia to turn to China and other countries for help.
Without it, Australia’s supply chain could collapse. When essential chemicals are used up within a few weeks, half of the country’s truck fleet cannot deliver the goods to supermarket shelves.
In the past ten years, Australia stopped manufacturing cars and trains for Sydney’s rail network (Waratah trains pictured)
In Sydney, three-quarters of the trains are now imported, and commuters take public transportation made in China and South Korea.
Just 11 years ago, before the Chinese car became the best-selling car, the Holden Commodore was the best-selling car in Australia-this was the last time a locally-made car topped the annual sales list.
By October 2017, Australia no longer made cars, and the last Commodore rolled off the production line in Adelaide, ending GM's local body assembly and full-scale manufacturing for more than a century.
Group H intercity trains: 2006 to 2012
A set of Waratah trains: 2010 to 2014
One year after Ford stopped producing the Falcon and Toyota stopped producing the Camry in Melbourne, the long history of Holden automobile manufacturing came to an end.
The MG ZS made in China is now in the top ten.
Even the Hills Hoist clothesline invented in Australia, as a proud symbol of our suburban success, is now made in China.
In 2014, only three years after Australia stopped manufacturing cars, the trains of the Sydney rail network are still being manufactured in Newcastle, 160 kilometers north of the city.
The last locally made Waratah train was completed at Downer EDI's Cardiff plant that year.
Two years later, in 2016, then Liberal Prime Minister Mike Baird (Mike Baird) announced that Hyundai Motor will manufacture more than 500 intercity train cars in South Korea for use in Sydney, Central Coast, Newcastle, Wollongong and Blue Mountains The cost of the service is US$2.3 billion.
The contract for the manufacture of Waratah trains has been converted to UGL. Although the trains were produced in Newcastle before, when it was called the Goninan Company, UGL did not include local content.
In February 2019, the Gladys Berejiklian government, Mr. Baird’s Liberal successor, announced that it would expedite the delivery of another 17 new air-conditioned Waratah series 2 trains for use in suburban networks, bringing the total to 41.
Just 11 years ago, before the Chinese car became the best-selling car, the Holden Commodore was the best-selling car in Australia-this was the last time a locally-made car topped the annual sales list. By October 2017, Australia no longer made cars, and the last Commodore (pictured) rolled off the production line in Adelaide, ending GM’s local body assembly and full-scale manufacturing for more than a century
Downer EDI has outsourced manufacturing to China and commissioned CRRC Changchun to manufacture locomotives.
The McKell Institute, which is consistent with the Labor Party, estimates that, plus rolling stock and operating costs, the contract is worth US$2.6 billion.
Intercity train: 500 cars made in Korea
Suburban train: 17 trains from China
Sydney Metro: 22 trains from India
Light rail: 60 cars in France and Spain
Ferries: 13 ships from China and Indonesia
Line B bus: 38 vehicles, chassis made in Germany, assembled in Malaysia
The Railway, Tram and Bus Union took action on strike on Tuesday to protest that three-quarters of the state’s commuter rail fleet was imported and refused to drive foreign-made trains.
The leader of the New South Wales Labor Party, Christines, promised that if he wins the March 2023 election, he will give priority to supporting the work of the public transportation manufacturing industry.
"Domestic transportation manufacturing means direct work as well as indirect work-from the steel of the carriage to the interior of the seats; not to mention the ongoing work, including maintenance and repairs," he told the Australian Daily Mail.
At a media conference, he called on the New South Wales coalition government to bring back local manufacturing jobs.
He said: "We call on the government to draw a line: start to support Australian manufacturing."
Facts have proved that there is a problem with the trams imported from Spain, and the light rail in Sydney's inner west may be suspended for 18 months.
Now many cracks have been found in the hull of the Manly ferry made in China.
The previous coalition government of New South Wales had ordered trains to be made locally.
In 1972, Liberal Prime Minister Robert Askin commissioned A. Goninan & Co to build Group S trains in Broadmeadow, Newcastle, and built 509 carriages in the next eight years.
Until 2019, these silver double-decker carriages are still transporting Sydney commuters.
Under the leadership of Liberal Prime Ministers Nick Greiner and John Fah, Gogninan continued to build Tangalla from 1988 to 1995.
The Rail, Tram and Bus Union went on strike on Tuesday to protest that three-quarters of the state’s commuter rail fleet was imported and refused to drive foreign-made trains (picture shows the morning commute chaos in Sydney)
New South Wales Labor Party leader Chris Minnes promised that if he wins the March 2023 election, he will give priority to supporting the work of the public transport manufacturing industry
UGL Rail-the company renamed Goninan-also built modern Group H trains in Broadmeadow between 2006 and 2012, mainly during the Labor Party's administration.
In August last year, former Prime Minister Gladys Berejiklian (Gladys Berejiklian) said: “Australia and New South Wales are not good at building trains, that’s why we have to buy them.”
Australia also no longer produces additives for diesel engine operation.
Incitec Pivot is a fertilizer manufacturer and the only diesel engine-grade urea manufacturer in Australia. This product is an indispensable product to meet national vehicle emission standards.
This product is sold as AdBlue in Australia.
DGL produces urea, but imports it from New Zealand.
But in November, CEO Jeanne Johns announced that Incitec Pivot would stop urea production at its Gibson Island plant in Brisbane in 2022 because of a natural gas supply dispute.
Instead, Incitec Pivot Limited will import this chemical and other fertilizers.
"Urea, ammonia sulfate and other specialty products will come from IPL's existing international import supply chain to replace these manufactured products," it told the Australian Securities Exchange.
Facts have proved that the breakdown of Spanish imported trams is so serious that Sydney’s inner west light rail may be out of service for 18 months (the picture shows the tram at Central Station)
China supplies 80% of urea in the Asia-Pacific region, but its National Development and Reform Commission announced in July that it would crack down on the hoarding of fertilizers, which caused state-owned companies to restrict their exports.
The diesel exhaust gas treatment fluid AdBlue sold in Australia contains 32% urea and 68% deionized water.
Urea additives reduce the level of smog pollutants nitric oxide emitted into the atmosphere. Without it, modern diesel trucks, utes, and four-wheel drives would not be able to start.
The National Road Transport Association is worried that Australia's supply may be used up by the end of January, but CEO Warren Clark said that some truck drivers are already worried about insufficient supplies next week.
"We really don't know how much there are in the supply chain, and a few NatRoad members say they may run out as early as this week," he said.
Now, Brisbane no longer produces the additives needed to start diesel engines, forcing Australia to turn to China for help when it stops exporting a basic chemical. Without it, Australia's supply chain may collapse, and half of the truck fleet cannot put goods on supermarket shelves, triggering new crisis negotiations (pictured is a Woolworths truck in Melbourne)
On Friday, Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce’s policy adviser met with the National Road Transport Association.
Mr. Joyce's spokesperson and Minister of Transport urged Australians not to panic.
"The government is aware of the concerns about the supply and availability of AdBlue and continues to monitor the situation while cooperating with the industry," he told the Australian Daily Mail.
"We encourage industry operators not to panic and continue to operate as usual."
The diesel exhaust gas treatment fluid AdBlue sold in Australia contains 32% urea and 68% deionized water. Urea additives can reduce the emission of smog pollutant nitric oxide into the atmosphere. Without it, modern diesel trucks, utes and four-wheel drives will not be able to start
The Ministry of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications and the Ministry of Prime Minister and Cabinet will meet on Wednesday to hold a crisis dialogue with industry groups on the issue of insufficient supply of AdBlue.
A spokesman for Energy Minister Angus Taylor said that Indonesia and the Middle East produce urea for diesel engines.
"The government is working closely with the industry to understand the current disruption in the global urea market," he told the Australian Daily Mail.
"We currently have sufficient numbers in Australia to meet our needs, and are working with the industry and the entire government to ensure that we continue to have a strong and resilient supply chain for necessities."
In 1966, the tariff on imported cars was increased to 45%
As part of a comprehensive tariff reduction plan of 25%, Labor Prime Minister Gough Whitlam reduced this ratio to 33.75% in 1973
His Liberal successor, Malcolm Fraser, raised the auto tariff to 45% in 1976 and to 57.5% in 1978.
Bob Hawke's Labor government abolished import quotas in 1988 and immediately reduced car tariffs to 45%
Under the leadership of Paul Keating, automobile tariffs were reduced to 35% in 1992 and 30% in 1994, but the tariffs on four-wheel drive vehicles classified as primary production vehicles were reduced to 15%. %
The government of Liberal Prime Minister John Howard reduced auto tariffs to 25% in 1996, 20% in 1998, 15% in 2000, and 10% in 2005
The Labour Party under Kevin Rudd continued its predecessor’s plan to reduce tariffs to 5% in 2010
By October 2017, when Holden built the last Commodore in Adelaide, the last Australian-made car was off the assembly line
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