Opel booster
March 2, 2010
US car manufacturing giant, General Motors, has said it will pump three times as much money into its European units, Opel and Vauxhall, as it had previously planned.
The move, which may be welcomed by a workforce demoralised by threats of vast job losses, will improve the company's standing in Europe.
The new plans mean that GM will invest 1.9 billion euros ($2.6 billion) in Opel. It had previously promised to support the unit with 600 million euros.
Opel's main production is based in Germany, but it also has plants in Poland, Britain, Spain, Hungary and Austria. A factory in Antwerp, Belgium, is due to be closed during 2010, although local resistance is ongoing.
New money won't save jobs
GM's indecision last year over the future of Opel incurred the wrath of European governments and workers alike when at the last minute it abandoned a long-awaited deal with Canada's Magna. German Chancellor Angela Merkel had put her weight behind the complex arrangement in an effort to secure German jobs.
Opel CEO Nick Reilly said in a statement on Tuesday that he hoped the news of the vast increase in investment would be "well received" by Europe.
Whatever the size of the financial infusion, GM still plans over 8,000 job cuts in Opel factories across Europe. Opel has about 50,000 workers, half of whom are based in its four German factories.
td/dpa/APN
Editor: Michael Lawton