Opel set for partial split from GM
February 28, 2009 by David Twomey
It seems the break-up of the General Motors worldwide empire is becoming inevitable with the latest reports indicating that the major European operation, German-based Opel, will be at least partially spun off from its US parent.
Reuters newsagency says Opel has agreed to a restructuring plan that aims to save as many jobs and factories as possible but requires 3.3 billion Euros (US$4.18 billion) in state aid.
Quoting GM officials it says the idea is to split off Opel into a separate unit that would remain linked to its stricken US parent while letting outside investors take a stake of more than 25 per cent.
GM Europe President Carl-Peter Forster told a news conference on Friday that GM Europe would include the UK unit, Vauxhall, into the new corporate entity and the spinoff could range from 25 percent to 50 percent of the company.
There are still no decisions about plant closures or forced layoffs, Mr Forster said. Using conservative market assumptions the restructuring is expected to make GM Europe/Opel profitable by 2011.
The Opel supervisory board meeting came a day after thousands of workers protested in Russelsheim, German, calling for an independent Opel after 80 years as a unit of GM. It is the first carmaker in Europe to ask for government support to survive.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, facing an election in September, wants to save as many of the roughly 25,000 German jobs at Opel as possible and the government has said it will consider granting financing guarantees once it has seen the revamp plan.
The plan has now been submitted to the German government and the governments in Belgium, Spain and the UK where Opel/Vauxhall has plants.
Opel is looking for state aid in the form of credit guarantees or outright loans and wants trade unions to contribute hundreds of millions of Euros in savings in order to bridge a liquidity gap.
The trade unions, however, want to share job cuts across European plants like Germany’s Bochum factory, Antwerp in Belgium and Ellesmere Port in Britain, to save any single site from being closed.
Reports say Opel dealers across Europe have indicated a willingness to take a financial stake in the restructured independent company to help save it, and their livelihoods.
Opel produces the Astra range that is sold in Australia by GM Holden and in the past has also produced the Barina, in addition GM Holden sells a modified version of the Commodore-based HSV range to Vauxhall.
Print it: 
Holden’s decision to go down road of the Cruze seems truly sound and that is the bigger picture…..unlike some drawing weak line that it lines up against Viva and Astra and is a conundrum model.
Good for Opel, Gm have stifled the brand and now Opel can swing its arms a little maybe not for long because of debts but they can have a go.
This is “music to my ears” hearing & seeing the slow DEMISE of G.M.& its subsidiaries.
There is so much more to choose from now, which people have finally “seen-the-light” and are just doing.
It was probably quite an obvious parting when you look at it.
GM made their future clear when they invested the future of their small cars in the less cost infected Daewoo facility
It sort of made Opel redundant when they did that
wouldnt be surprised to see the other half sold off when the market strengthens a bit in the future
And to think I said it was unfounded (at that point) yesterday when talking about the Cruze…. ;-)
Possibly the best thing that could happento Opel/Vauxhall, however if I was to be taking them on I’d want more than just 25%, I would be after full controlling interest whilst still having access to some of GM’s hardware
haaaa … more bad news for GM – it just keeps getting better and better and all while the 2009 Consumer Report that was just released in the US slammed GM for thier questionable vehicles as they got smashed by the Japanese manufactuers.
Honda ranked first with 78pts followed by Subaru with 75, Toyota 74 and Mazda 73. I beieve Hyundai and VW scored 70 or there abouts while Ford ranked down the list on 63pts all while GM scored a pathetic 57 with Chrysler ranked dead-last.
Worth noting … while 70% of Ford’s fleet received a rating of AVERAGE or ABOVE (9well done to them), only a pathetic 17% of GM’s fleet received the same.
As always and only naturally expected – GM is the most screwed-up, lost and incompetant automotive brand of them all
Remember PanAm? Different industry, but GM is the new PanAm, 40 years later.
I am glad GM is burning to the ground. They insisted to keep making fuel guzzeling cars and now look where it’s left them! They were so blind to what was happening around the world. I suppose that sums up Americans as a whole anyway.
Good on Opel and vuaxhall. Best of luck.
I think that GM will cut jobs in Europe as nobody is buying cars of any sort. Labour cost in Europe are very high and the German government are not interested in bailing out, particularly helping GM.
All this GM bashing is just making the whole situation worst. Even the Japanese manufacturers are in trouble!
frenchie, the japanese companies are not in trouble as such. as they are putting plans in place in order to make sure they do not suffer the gm effict as i like to call it! lol. as for gm splitting its entities, this is just a ploy by them to try to leach as much money out of as many goverments as possible before they go belly up so the gm fat cats can still get their payouts!!!!
they think that because jobs are on the line govs will get sucked in, oh wait ruddy already did! the german gov won’t though as if opel shuts, in the long run it will make vw/audi stronger as less competition. that will see them expand in years to come, recreate jobs, make them a bigger europe #1 and best of all from a german point of view screw over the cocky americas!!! lol, no pun intended in ref to ww2, maybe.
Pauly,
but you cant blame the US manufacturers for still building what the US consumers want…..
Even through the “fuel crisis” the F-Truck sat nicely on top with the sales crown on its head.
You would be laughed out of the meeting if you walked in there and said “guys we gotta stop making these things”.
and further to that, as Frenchie says, even the Japs are in trouble
The Japs are not in trouble, they need to time to re-adjust as they will … GM, Ford and Chrysler however are just simply SCREWED !!!!!!!
GM more then anyone else and by an ocean mile.
I’d rather get cars from GM than Chery or Tata.
Have a read of the artile in the MArch 09 issue of Wheels called “Meltdown in Motown” and youll get more of an idea as to what caused all the trouble in Detroit.
There is one particular statement which sums it all up
“Arrogance Complacency and Mowtowns suffocating small-town mindset compounded the problem”
It’s like the joke [ Andrew M said on another GM Topic ]where a man was living in an area that was being flooded.. 3 times people came by in their boats to rescue him and he said “no God will save me”.
In the end the guy drowned and when he was in heaven he asked God “why didn’t you save me? God replied “I sent 3 boats to rescue you.”
The signs were there but they [PRick Wagoner in particular] chose to ignore them.