The Future of the Australian Car Market: Policy, Competition and Electrification

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Powering the Future seminar #6

About this event

The Melbourne Energy Institute invites you to its sixth seminar in the Powering the Future series, a discussion between Nick Parkington from Honda Australia and A/Prof. David Keith from Melbourne Business School.

Australia’s automotive sector is entering a period of profound change, driven by the transition to electric vehicles, evolving emissions and transport policies, intensifying competition among established and emerging manufacturers, and rapid advances in vehicle technology. At the same time, questions remain about affordability, charging infrastructure, consumer choice, supply chains and the pace at which households and businesses will adopt new forms of mobility.

This seminar will explore how policy, competition and electrification are transforming the Australian car market. It will consider the implications for consumers, manufacturers, dealers and policymakers, and examine what will be required to support a market that is competitive, accessible and equipped for the transition to lower-emissions transport.


Event details

Date: Thursday 17 September 2026
Time: 2pm - 3pm AEST
Event type: Hybrid (in-person and online)
In-person location: Melbourne Connect, 7th Floor, Manhari Room 7212, 700 Swanston Street, Carlton VIC 3053

Join us in person for an opportunity to meet Nick Parkington and speak with him after the session.

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Speaker

Nick Parkington
General Manager - Automotive
Honda Australia

Nick Parkington is an automotive executive with more than 20 years of experience in the Australian car industry. He has held leadership roles at some of Australia’s best-known automotive brands, with responsibility for Sales; Aftersales; Regional Operations; Supply Chain; and Franchise & Network Development. Nick has led teams and businesses through significant change and transformation, including navigating the commercial realities of the Federal Government’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES); what this means for global manufacturers and their approach to the Australian market.  His experience provides a practical perspective on how OEMs are responding to changing market dynamics, increasing competition, and the rapid emergence of new automotive brands in Australia.  Nick is a General Committee Member of the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) and is currently the General Manager of Honda Australia’s Automotive business.

Moderator

Associate Professor David Keith
Power Generation and Transport Program Leader, Melbourne Energy Institute
Associate Professor of Innovation and Sustainability, Melbourne Business School
University of Melbourne

A/Prof. David Keith is Associate Professor of Innovation and Sustainability at Melbourne Business School (MBS), and Research Director of the MBS Sustainable Value Creation Institute. David joined MBS in 2023 after 10 years on the faculty of the MIT Sloan School of Management in the System Dynamics Group. David specialises in the use of simulation for strategy development in complex and dynamic settings. His research interests include: the adoption and use of electric and autonomous vehicles, platform competition in the sharing economy, the financing of emerging energy technologies, and barriers to corporate investment in sustainability initiatives. David has received several awards for his research including a Fulbright scholarship for doctoral study at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and an Alcoa Foundation Fellowship from the American Australian Association. David has consulted extensively with executives from leading global organizations such as Toyota, Google, Volkswagen, Facebook, Ford, and Braskem, helping them achieve sustaining competitive advantage with new technologies, business models, and organizational practices. David is also an experienced entrepreneur and startup advisor, helping teams build solutions to pressing global challenges.

David was co-founder and CEO of Mobilyze.ai, a software platform for the location analysis and financing of electric vehicle charging stations that was acquired in 2022 by FreeWire Technologies, a manufacturer of battery-integrated fast charging hardware.

About MEI's Powering the Future Seminar Series

Bringing together leading researchers and industry experts, MEI’s Powering the Future seminar series will explore the key technological, political and societal developments shaping the energy sector.

Designed for energy industry professionals, government stakeholders, students, and academics, the seminars aim to foster informed discussion across technical, economic and policy dimensions of the energy transition. Each session will be delivered in a hybrid format, allowing participants to attend in person or join online.

Read more about the seminars, and sign up to be notified when the seminars are open for registration.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed are those of the presenter and do not necessarily reflect the official position of The Melbourne Energy Institute and The University of Melbourne.

The Melbourne Energy Institute welcomes broad discussion. Please engage respectfully and considerately with all perspectives.

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