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GM Won't Buy Opel Back

After RHJ International this week admitted it would sell Opel back to GM after it completes restructuring, John Smith GM group vice president and GM’s chief negotiator for the sale of Opel said the company does not want to rebuy the German brand in the future. RHJ said, through the voice of its CEO, that General Motors could buy Opel back in the future in case it wants to.

"Let us be pragmatic. It won't work without General Motors," the CEO of the Belgian private-equity firm, Leonhard Fischer, told Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung.

But GM doesn't even think of such a thing, as the company "does not seek to reacquire majority control of Opel, from any investor candidate," Smith said.

Meanwhile, both GM and Germany are holding talks with the two investors who are still in the race for Opel. While the German government is supporting Magna's bid, GM Europe says RHJ's offer is better and would be easier to implement. But all these disagreements should be resolved by September, Smith explained.

"We remain fully open to working these issues to a conclusion, but we cannot say when that process will conclude, other than to say, “as soon as possible.” It’s our hope that we will be able to present a very clean and workable bid for the consideration of the Opel Trust Board and the German authorities that will be selected based on the best economic and societal analysis. We still believe this can be closed by the end of September objective we have in front of us," he said.

A source familiar with the matter earlier this day revealed that selling Opel could take longer than expected, thus denying media reports saying that a decision will be made at the next board meeting in early August.
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About the author: Bogdan Popa
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Bogdan keeps an eye on how technology is taking over the car world. His long-term goals are buying an 18-wheeler because he needs more space for his kid’s toys, and convincing Google and Apple that Android Auto and CarPlay deserve at least as much attention as their phones.
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