Word: opels
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Thousands of Opel workers in Germany are breathing a huge sigh of relief after the last-minute deal to rescue GM's European operations. German unions had always supported Austrian-Canadian company Magna International's takeover of GM Europe, wary that the rival bid from Fiat was just an attempt, as one union official put it, to "pinch German engineering." The unions regard Magna as an innovative company that put forward the best plan to secure the long-term future of Opel. At the carmaker's headquarters in the town of Rüsselsheim near Frankfurt, workers were hugging friends...
...Magna consortium, which pledges to invest €700 million ($970 million) in Opel, has softened its position on job cuts and plant closings several times under pressure from German politicians. Magna's plan would leave GM with 35% of the company and Sberbank with a 35% stake, while Magna would take 20% and Opel employees would control...
...Austrian-Canadian Magna group and Italy's Fiat SpA remain the strongest bidders for Opel. Under pressure from trade unions and key leaders of German states where Opel operates, Berlin has appeared thus far to favor the plan presented by the Austrian billionaire Frank Stronach, whose Magna group is a major worldwide supplier of components to GM. Stronach has teamed up with Russian carmaker OAO GAZ Group and the state-controlled Russian financial group OAO Sberbank. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has been lobbying Merkel to support the Magna bid. Stronach told reporters on the sidelines of Wednesday's meeting...
...group to create one of the biggest carmakers in the world. His plans to close plants in Germany and Italy have been roundly condemned by powerful German governors and the IG Metall trade union. A Chinese carmaker, Beijing Automotive Industry Corp., is expected to detail its own plan for Opel next week. (See the 50 worst cars of all time...
...Whatever deal eventually emerges, experts warn that Opel's future is anything but rosy in a car industry beset by a massive erosion of demand. The Financial Times reported that the offer document GM sent out to bidders last month predicted a loss before tax and interest payments of more than $3 billion at its European businesses this year. (See pictures...