French carmaker # 39 on the group; ambitions
Germany Opel sale on the occasion of French car manufacturer for both.
Carlos Tavares, CEO of PSA Peugeot Citroën, right, and the German Minister of Economy and Energy, Brigitte Zypries, left, smile upon their arrival for a meeting in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, April 5 , 2017.
Carlos Tavares, CEO of PSA Peugeot Citroën, right, and the German Minister of Economy and Energy, Brigitte Zypries, left, smile upon their arrival for a meeting in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, April 5 , 2017.
Carlos Tavares, CEO of PSA Peugeot Citroën, left, and German Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, Brigitte Zypries, right, talk before a meeting in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, April 5, 2017.
Carlos Tavares, CEO of PSA Peugeot Citroën, left, and German Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, Brigitte Zypries, right, talk before a meeting in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, April 5, 2017.
AP BERLIN Germany Economy Minister and other officials met Wednesday with the head of carmaker PSA Group and union representatives to go over the details of the acquisition of the French company General Motors' European brand Adam Opel AG with both sides saying the talks were constructive.
GM sold its Opel and Vauxhall brands PSA in March for about 2 33 billion, making the French company, which also makes the Peugeot and Citroën cars, the No. 2 automaker in Europe after Volkswagen.
Opel employs 19,000 people in Germany out of a total workforce of 38,000, and the sale has raised concerns about job losses, especially in an election year Vauxhall, the British brand, employs 4,500 people at two plants.
The leaders emphasized that no layoffs are currently planned if analysists said they're inevitable in the long term.
PSA CEO Carlos Tavares group said there are ways to contain plant costs other than cutting workers, and that the company would focus on logistics, quality, energy, maintenance and security.
In a joint statement issued after the meeting, Economy Minister Brigitte Zypries said Tavares reaffirmed SAP's commitment to honor existing labor agreements and meeting participants agreed that the sale can offer significant advantages both PSA and Opel Vauxhall.
Zypries said Germany would continue to provide constructive support to the merger of PSA and Opel Vauxhall both federal and state.
I am pleased that we have made progress, particularly in the interest of the employees of Opel Vauxhall, she said, I particularly welcome the commitment made by M. Tavares to respect and pursue all collective agreements.
Other topics of the meeting included the continuation of Opel Vauxhall into one company with independent brand within the PSA group, and the agreement to work with the unions to ensure the long term viability of Opel Vauxhall brands, production sites, and central development in Europe.
All parties have agreed to meet again to continue discussions at a later unspecified date.
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