Following its cancelled sale of Opel to Canada’s Magna International, General Motors will present its turnaround plan for the ailing German car maker next month. Several European countries – including Germany and Spain – have requested GM to explain its plans for Opel going forward.
Although GM’s turnaround plan for Opel will include slashing production capacity, GM Europe interim head Nick Reilly says the German brand will be just as well off under GM control as it would have been under Magna. “Our plan is very similar to Magna’s. I don’t think it’s worse,” he told Reuters. Reilly is filling in for former GM Europe head Carl-Peter Forster.
GM plans to cut its European production capacity by about 25 percent, which will undoubtedly effect its Opel operations. Although no official figures have been given, GM is expected to cut about 10,000 of Opel’s 50,000 strong European workforce.
GM is still holding talks with Germany and Spanish governments about aiding Opel’s turnaround, but the failed sale to Magna could force GM to restructure Opel with funds from the United States government.
