UPDATE: GM Executives Discuss Co's European Car Woes With EU Mins
March 13 2009 - 2:27PM
Dow Jones News
Motors Corp. (GM) executives arrrived in Brussels Friday for
talks with European Union economic and industry ministers to try to
avoid a meltdown of the car giant's European activities.
"The situation of General Motors in Europe merits special
attention," the European Commission said, adding no immediate
answers are expected.
GM's Chief Operating Officer in Detroit Fritz Henderson, and GM
Europe Chief Executive Carl Peter Forster are attending the
discussions along with ministers from Germany, Austria, Belgium,
the Czech Republic, Hungary, Luxembourg, Portugal, Romania, Sweden,
the Netherlands and the U.K.
The E.U.'s Industry and Enterprise Commissioner Guenter
Verheugen has said GM hasn't given clear information on its plans
for the European businesses. General Motors' European division
includes Opel, Vauxhall and Saab. E.U. countries with GM car plants
fear restructuring plans could lead to many thousands of job cuts
and even trigger social unrest.
Opel and Vauxhall need a total of EUR3.3 billion in aid, while
Saab needs EUR500 million from the Swedish government to survive,
GM officials have said.
GM itself has received a $13.4 billion bailout from the U.S.
government and is urgently seeking $16.6 billion more.
Opel and Saab might push for around 7,600 job cuts as part of a
restructuring plan to receive state aid and stave off insolvency, a
person familiar with the situation has told Dow Jones
Newswires.
The German government is looking for investors for Opel, but
nothing can happen without answers from GM on Opel's future, it has
said.
"We are hoping that something comes out of the meeting that our
minister can take with him," when he meets GM bosses in the U.S.
next week, German Industry Ministry official Jochen Homann said as
he arrived for Friday's meeting.
-By Alessandro Torello, Dow Jones Newswires; +32 2 741 14 88;
alessandro.torello@dowjones.com