GM CEO schedules visit to Kansas Fairfax plant

[April 21, 2010]  KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) -- General Motors Co. is preparing major investments at its plants in Detroit and Kansas City, Kan. -- the latest signal of a potential turnaround for the automaker.

Wednesday's expected announcement by CEO Ed Whitacre at the company's Fairfax Assembly Plant in Kansas City comes a day after the company confirmed it has repaid the $8.1 billion in loans it received from the U.S. and Canadian governments.

The loan payback to the U.S. government comes five years ahead of schedule, and Whitacre said it is a sign GM is on its way toward reducing government ownership of the company.

Whitacre is expected to say that GM will invest $257 million in Fairfax and a factory in Detroit that will build new versions of its popular midsize Malibu sedan.

[Associated Press]

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