Opel’s board was completely surprised by news of negotiations with PSA Groupe, according to Germany’s Manager Magazin, learning only from a phone call on Tuesday morning, though CEO Karl-Thomas Neumann had been informed a little earlier.
The report said Neumann had been working on a different future project for the car manufacturer for months – repositioning Opel eventually to be a purely electric competitor for Tesla and others.
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GM CEO Mary Barra and Opel’s supervisory board chairman Dan Ammann were confirmed as being in Rüsselsheim on Wednesday to inform the top management about the discussions with PSA which range from deeper cooperation (several shared projects already exist) with sale of Opel to PSA one of the scenarios to be discussed.
Manager Magazin said Neumann developed the alternative electro strategy in past months with the management board. He wants to build a new Opel on the new electro platform of the GM group. In spring, at the latest in May, the GM executive board is to decide on the electrical plan. The future of that plan in view of the PSA negotiations is now unclear.
The magazine said the Neumann plan is an opportunity to ensure the survival of the brand. GM has not earned any profit in Europe for more than 15 years. In 2016 the operating loss was US$257m and the prospects for 2017 are also gloomy.
Neumann reportedly thinks Opel will not be able to invest sufficiently in the medium term in simultaneous development of cars with combustion engines and electric drive so wanted to focus the brand completely at an early stage on future mobility, ending production of combustion engine models from 2030. Old and New Opel companies would be formed.
