Friday, September 11, 2009
Belgium wants probe of Opel sale
Belgium wants the European Union to investigate Germany's role in the sale of General Motor's European units.
GM decided to sell Opel and Vauxhall to Germany's preferred bidder, Canadian car parts manufacturer Magna.
Magna has said that it will keep all four German plants open, but it has suggested it could wind down production at a plant in Antwerp.
"I think the German government sought its own advantage," said Belgian Vice Premier Joelle Milquet.
State aid rules
Germany had been pushing for the sale to Magna, which is backed by Russia's Sberbank.
The government has already lent 1.5bn euros to Opel, and will now put up an additional 3bn euros in loan guarantees for Magna.
Belgian Foreign Minister Yves Leterme also backed calls to have the European Commission probe the deal. He said Belgium would bring the GM sale up at a meeting of EU ministers next week.
The European Commission said it was following the GM sale process "very closely".
"The Commission has underlined that the financial support must be fully compliant with all aspects of the EU's state aid and internal market rules," it said.
"In particular, state aid cannot be subject to additional non-commercial conditions concerning the location of investments and/or the geographic distribution of restructuring measures."
The EU's executive body added it will be "attentive" to the "social consequences" of the sale as it comes to a conclusion about its legality.
German guarantee
The German-led Opel Trust - containing representatives from GM, the German federal government and the German states that contain Opel plants - has controlled the European operations since GM sought bankruptcy protection in the US in June this year.
The trust's chairman, Fred Irwin, said on Thursday that they had recommended - "given the burden on German taxpayers and for the sake of German jobs" - that those guarantees be used for Opel in Germany only.
The sale to Magna is being seen as a victory for German chancellor Angela Merkel - who said she was "very pleased" about it - just two weeks before the national election.
Opel employs a total of 54,500 workers across Europe, with 25,000 based in Germany.
British unions have expressed concern about the long-term future of Vauxhall's 5,500 UK workers and its two British plants in Luton and Ellesmere Port.
Magna has also suggested shifting some production from a plant in Zaragosa in Spain back to Germany.
DATED: 11.09.09
FEED: AW
