Every day seems to bring a wild swing in the see-saw of the Opel saga that is gripping Belgian politicians and unions.
Maybe they’re clutching at straws, but the unions have repeatedly said there is a Chinese investor waiting in the wings to make an offer for the Antwerp factory that is rapidly running out of time.
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But the identity of the Chinese partner – and the European Works Council maintains it knows who it is – remains a closely-guarded secret.
Sources close to the matter have insisted that rapidly circulating rumours the Chinese outfit is Geely are to be ignored and that people have put “two and two together to make eight.”
In fact the source tried hard to distance Geely as far as possible from GM’s Opel plant, preferring to concentrate on its Volvo subsidiary’s factory in Ghent.
The clear inference was why would Geely want a third plant in Europe and a second one in Belgium?
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By GlobalDataWell, no-one yet knows any terms GM might be prepared to come to and there’s the new carrot being dangled by the Flemish government of loan guarantees for investment or a sale and lease back agreement.
But what is co-incidental with all the rumours – and presumably fuelled their fire too – is that Geely chairman Li Shufu visited Flanders Minister President Kris Peeters this week as part of an EU-China summit.
But despite Geely’s best efforts to quash speculation surrounding the Antwerp plant, one highly-placed source in Belgium told just-auto today (8 October) that Li Shufu had not just concentrated on his Volvo division’s Ghent activities.
Indeed, he had also turned his attention – in tandem with the Flanders government’s so-called Reconversion Group comprising politicians and finance experts to find an Antwerp solution – to the Opel plant’s future.
“At the last meeting between Li Shufu and Peeters, Mr Shufu said he was interested to give orders to his experts to search with the experts of the Reconversion Group [as to] what could be the case – with Opel Antwerp,” the source said.
Is it, isn’t it Geely? The whole matter is open to conjecture, while the Flanders government says it is now going into a period of purdah until 22 October before it makes any further announcements.
Two and two to make eight? Or will it in fact, make four?
