The future of General Motors' Opel European offshoot remains open, with the giant US carmaker saying Thursday that all options for future ownership of the company remain on the table, according to dpa. This followed a report in the Wall Street Journal saying that GM wants the governments in Spain, Britain and Poland to provide 1 billion euros (1.43 billion dollars) as part of a restructuring of the Opel group. "All options for a solution for Opel are to be examined," a GM Europe spokeswoman said amid speculation that the Detroit-based carmaker is considering retaining control of Opel, instead of hiving off a majority stake in the group, which includes the Opel and British Vauxhall brands. Quoting what it said was a GM official involved in the negotiations, the Wall Street Journal also said the American auto group was prepared to pour more than 1 billion euros of its own money into restructuring Opel. But according to German Press Agency dpa sources GM has been considering the investment plan in the event that it fails to sell off the majority stake in Opel to the groups bidding for control. "Should the negotiations with the bidders not reach a satisfactory result then alternatives must be examined," said a source close to the negotiations. The renewed uncertainty about Opel's future comes in the build-up to a GM board meeting next week, which is expected to consider plans for Opel. About half of Opel's 50,000-strong European workforce is based in Germany. Berlin has endorsed a bid from the Austrian-Canadian auto supplier Magna International to acquire a majority holding in Opel by offering state-backed guarantees worth about 4.5 billion euros. The General Motors board decided last month against making a decision on Opel, with company officials indicating that GM would like Berlin to consider an alternative offer for its European subsidiary, drawn up by the Brussels-based private equity group RHJ International. RHJ International earlier this week raised its offer for a 50.1- per-cent stake in what has been described as the New Opel by 25 million euros to 300 million euros in cash. Berlin has also provided Opel with a 1.5 billion euro bridging loan to help the car group through its current upheaval. The talks over Opel come at a crucial time for German Chancellor Angela Merkel, weeks before a federal election. The other European nations where Opel has operations - Spain, Britain and Poland - have been concerned that the financial support offered by Berlin meant that they would bear the brunt of any cost cutting launched by the new owners of Opel. Opel's union leader, Klaus Franz, attacked GM's reported investment plans as "naive." He said that Opel needed a minimum of 6 billion euros to help it develop new models and to press on with a restructuring. Plunging car sales forced GM to launch earlier this year a major restructuring of its global operations, including selling off of a majority stake in Opel. But since then, the carmaker has emerged from bankruptcy and a new GM board has been appointed. Also, there are signs the economic crisis has abated for the global car industry and the world economy in general.
