PSA pledges to keep
Opel's four German sites running: Bild am Sonntag
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[February 20, 2017]
FRANKFURT
(Reuters) - PSA Group has pledged to the German government to continue
operating all four of Opel's German production sites as part of the
French carmaker's planned takeover of General Motors' <GM.N> European
arm, German Sunday paper Bild am Sonntag reported.
The planned sale was confirmed by both companies on Tuesday, raising the
specter of cutbacks in the wake of a deal because Europe's car industry
has been dogged for years by overcapacity.
Government sources told Reuters that PSA had signaled it was open to
German demands to preserve sites, jobs and existing collective
bargaining contracts but talks with Britain, home to Opel's sister brand
Vauxhall, would also have to tie into a final job deal.
The paper said PSA's General Counsel Olivier Bourges told two deputy
ministers and an adviser to Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday that
Opel would continue as a separate entity within PSA group and that no
German sites would be closed, without specifying its sources.
The takeover deal will likely be signed by March 9, the beginning of the
Geneva auto show, the paper added.
Germany's economy minister Brigitte Zypries on Thursday said she
expected the deal to go ahead, after the U.S. carmaker sought to allay
fears of large-scale plant closures in the country.
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The logo of German car manufacturer Opel is pictured at the compnay
headquarters in Ruesselsheim, Germany, February 14, 2017.
REUTERS/Ralph Orlowski/File Photo
Two
sources close to PSA have, however, told Reuters that job and plant cuts were
part of the tie-up talks, with the two British sites of Vauxhall in the front
line.
PSA's chief executive will meet British Prime Minister Theresa May to discuss
the deal, officials said on Saturday, amid concern Britain's departure from the
European Union could put Vauxhall sites at a disadvantage to Opel's.
Germany accounts for about half of GM Europe's 38,000 staff, while there are
4,500 in Britain. Other countries with Opel production sites include Spain and
Poland.
A PSA spokesman confirmed only that a meeting between PSA representatives and
German officials had taken place last week and that discussions had been
constructive.
Opel declined to comment.
(Writing by Ludwig Burger; Reporting by Matthias Sobolewski, Gernot Heller, Ralf
Bode in Berlin, Mathieu Rosemain in Paris, Jan Schwartz in Hamburg; Editing by
Mark Potter)
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