If anybody would offer me Nick Reilly’s job, I would scream. I don’t have the nerves the assignment takes. Yesterday, Opel made headlines for losing 51.5 percent in May. In today’s mass publication BILD Zeitung, there is even worse news: (Read More…)
The new Buick Regal is aimed straight at Acura’s TSX… could this forthcoming Opel Astra Coupe be Buick’s answer to the late Acura Integra/RSX? GM has thus far refused to confirm any Astra-based Buicks besides a sedan that’s already being caught without camo in China. But if Buick is going compact, where should it draw the line? After all, the brand is anxious to attract young buyers… but does a compact coupe take Buick’s youth movement too far? And what do you call a Buick coupe that could fit under the hood of a classic Riviera? Rebadged Opels and younger buyers are a solid basis for a Buick revival, but cars like this one prove that Buick needs more than just a direction to head in: it needs a vision.
Technical experts analyzing GM’s request for $1.35b in Opel aid from the German government have reported back, and the signs aren’t looking good. According to the Financial Times, the experts advising a political committee that will rule on Opel aid next week returned a negative outlook on The General’s request. German officials tell the newspaper that
the technical experts’ stance was “formally not a complete No” but that it “meant No in practice”
GM is requesting €1.9b in loans for its €3.7b restructuring of Opel. Though it looks like the €1.2b ($1.35b) it is requesting from Germany will be turned down, some portion of that amount might still be awarded by local German state governments. If that scenario plays out though, more employment cuts could be in order for Opel’s German production staff.
Pretty soon you’ll hear about a breakthrough for Opel, and that there will be state aid. If not, you’ve read it here first. In any case, treat the news carefully. Munich’s Süddeutsche Zeitung, usually well-informed in Opel matters, reports that the state of Thuringia offered help to Opel. The Süddeutsche calls it a “symbolic offer.” (Read More…)
Any minute, or at least by the end of the month, the Chinese government will reveal super-secret plans to throw serious subsidy money at clean energy cars. The plans have been so secret that the Chinese market from mild hybrids all the way to full plug-ins came to a standstill with everybody waiting for the government to dole out heavy cash. Of course, GM doesn’t want to stand on the sidelines of this bonanza. (Read More…)
Opel has received a new lease on life. Nobody knows how long the lease will last, but Opel is an important step ahead and gained an even more important ally in its beggathon for state aid. Opel cut a deal with its unions, led by labor leader Klaus Franz.
“For much of the past year, Klaus Franz has been a thorn in General Motors Co.’s side,” wrote the Wall Street Journal. Franz “has blamed the European car unit’s troubles on its American parent, saying GM was ‘filled with yes-men’ and that it had a ‘centralized planning system worse than in East Germany.’ Now, GM needs to make nice with Mr. Franz.” With their backs to the wall, GM finally paid the price and made nice. (Read More…)
The Euro and the UK Pound go into a tailspin. Greece requires a bailout. Spain & Portugal could be next on the default list. The economy is in tatters. The car market is shrinking. The government announces spending cuts, on top of people’s reluctance to spend. On this dire backdrop, does it surprise you that workers at the Vauxhall plants (they’re actually Opel plants re-badged “Vauxhall”) have chosen to accept a pay freeze in return for job security? The Times of the UK reports that the 3200+ workers located in the UK are close to agreeing to a 2 year pay freeze. Union officials in the UK believe that the pay freeze is an acceptable hit to take in return for job security. They also believe that when it comes to the union vote, it will be passed through with little complaints. There is of course one slight flaw in the plan…. (Read More…)
As expected, the Loan Guarantee Committee decided not to decide anything in their meeting at the Economics Ministry in Berlin. Opel had requested €1.3b in state aid from Germany. They are making the rounds in Europe to collect another €500m. Countries that committed money, such as the U.K., will only pay if Germany pays. (Read More…)
With Pontiac and Saturn gone, Buick must assume a larger role within General Motors. It must now seek to win over enthusiasts who would have previously bought Pontiacs and the import-intenders who previously bought Saturns. The first product to follow from this expanded mission: the new 2011 Buick Regal. The Regal began life as the Opel Insignia—it will even be imported from Germany for the first year—and was to be marketed in the United States as the second-generation Saturn Aura. But it has been available in China as the Buick Regal for over a year now, so putting the tri-shield on the grille isn’t entirely an afterthought. This isn’t even the first time Opel has manufactured a car for Buick dealers—this tie goes way back. Even so, is the Regal a plausible Buick?
Today could be a big day for Opel. Probably, it won’t. The Loan Guarantee Committee is meeting in the Economics Ministry in Berlin. On the agenda: Opel’s request for €1.5b in state aid. The timing is not coincidental: Last weekend, elections were held in the Opel state of North Rhine Westphalia, which ended in a mess. Coalition discussions are on-going with unsure results. So let’s move quickly while Berlin can make decisions? Not exactly … (Read More…)
GM’s restructuring of its Opel division has long been seen as one of the greatest threats to The General’s US taxpayer-supplied cash pile, and the bleeding has now officially started. Reuters reports that GM has agreed to pay four hundred million Euros ($532,000) for worker termination benefits as it closes operations at its Opel plant in Antwerp, Belgium. The 2,600 employees who once built Opel Astras at the factory will be out of work by the end of the year, with about 1,250 planned to be terminated by June. The Flemish government has until September to find a new investor for the plant location; if it is successful, and the new tenant rehires the former Opel workers, GM could be off the hook for some of their termination costs. Considering that Europe has some of the worst auto overcapacity around though, the odds of another automaker taking over the plant don’t look good. Which means the fate of Opel’s Flemish workers, and the health of GM’s cash pile are likely in the hands of a non-auto industry investor. Meanwhile, with Opel planning on cutting 20 percent of its European capacity, the bleeding is only just beginning. But hey, is there a better use for American tax dollars than paying off European workers to the tune of $205k per job?
To stay alive, Opel wants to scale down. The factory in Antwerp is being closed. With amazing results for Opel’s bottom line: Closing the factory costs GM around €400m ($532m) in termination benefits. GM and the unions reached an agreement on the termination benefits earlier this week, reports Reuters. There are 2,600 workers in Antwerp. Now do the math: $532m divvied up amongst 2600 workers is a little bit over $200,000 per worker. Ouch! Wait, there is more pain … (Read More…)
It’s a line of attack that Ford has been careful to avoid in the US, but Ford Europe is lashing out at GM’s request that European governments help finance the restructuring of its Opel division. Businessweek reports that Ford of Europe’s vice president of government affairs Wolfgang Schneider laid into GM’s request for $2b, saying:
Restructuring your business is your own job and you should pay for it yourself and you should not use taxpayer money. We are definitely against any support for Opel. The Europeans have made the choice that they would use their tax money to sustain companies and business and to sustain capacity levels that from an economical point of view are not sustainable. We do not believe that governments will be able to continue that policy forever. Governments run out of money, as well.
Smackdown! Now, why hasn’t Mulally been saying the same thing for the last two years?
Unheard-of news are emanating from Rüsselsheim. So unheard-of that Automobilwoche found it necessary to send out an Extra! Extra! Lesen Sie all about it e-mail to its subscribers: GM’s Opel, the very same company that wants to shed 8,000 of its 48,000 jobs in Europe, is short of people. They are hiring! One reason: Jobs are being exported from the U.S.A. to Europe. (Read More…)
Opels head shop steward Klaus Franz is mightily mad at Opel’s CEO Nick Reilly. Reilly told the London Times that the Ampera, Opel’s counterpart to the Volt, may be built in the Ellesmere Port plant in the UK:“The chances are quite good that the Ampera will come to Ellesmere Port as it is close in production terms to the Astra and will share many components,” Reilly said. In the meantime, Berlin cues Roberta Flack’s “Killing me softly” as a prelude for Opel’s funeral. (Read More…)
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