Opel dealers from 25 European countries gathered in Vienna, Austria, today to confirm that they as a group want a stake in the future of the General Motors-owned German automaker. The dealers would be willing to invest about $200 per car sold over the next three years into a fund that would eventually reach about $680 million.
The dealers, all part of Euroda, the European Opel and GM dealer association, hope that level of investment would also guarantee them a seat on the automaker’s supervisory board.
Though the dealers would be unable to provide the lump sum up front, they hope that their investment would give them about 10-15 percent of Opel.
“To what extent our ideas can be fulfilled of course depends on negotiations and to what extents investors want us in a new Opel-Vauxhall company,” Euroda deputy chairman Albert Still told the Associated Press.
Opel is currently undergoing heavy negotiations with a number of bidders interested in acquiring a majority share in the automaker, including Italy’s Fiat and Canadian parts supplier Magna International.
“It could be historic that, for the first time, dealers participate in their manufacturer in a noteworthy extent and so gain a certain degree of influence on the future policy of the producer,” Still said.
