GM expects to complete sale of Opel
SHANGHAI — General Motors could finalize the sale of its German auto unit, Opel, as early as this week, the U.S. automaker's CEO said today.
Fritz Henderson, visiting China for the first time since GM was restructured last summer, was also upbeat about the prospects for the sale of the company's Hummer unit to Chinese buyer Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery which is still awaiting Chinese government approval.
Despite labor union objections over possible job losses, the sale of GM's Opel and Vauxhall units to Canadian auto parts supplier Magna International is expected to go ahead, Henderson told reporters.
Magna along with Russia's state-owned Sberbank agreed to buy a 65 percent stake in Opel from General Motors last month. GM is retaining a 35 percent stake.
GM, which spent 40 days in bankruptcy protection during the summer and has received about $50 billion in U.S. government aid, also plans to sell its Saab brand and scrap Pontiac and Saturn as it tries to streamline its operations.
The company signed a much-anticipated deal to sell its off-road vehicle unit Hummer to Sichuan Tengzhong on Friday. The deal gives Sichuan Tengzhong an 80 percent stake in the company, while Hong Kong investor Suolang Duoji, who indirectly owns a big stake in Tengzhong through an investment company, will get 20 percent. The investors will also get Hummer's nationwide dealer network.
Henderson would not comment on the sale price apart from saying the company was "satisfied." A person close to the deal said the price was around $150 million — much lower than the $500 million it was valued at in GM's bankruptcy filing.
Henderson denied reports he would meet with authorities while in China to push for the deal's approval, saying that it was up to the Chinese buyer to win needed government approvals.
