Opel is hinting at some of the possibly drastic measures to come in its rehabilitation plan due to be unveiled later this month as the automaker looks to halt its downward performance.
Addressing this year’s Automotive News Europe Congress in Monaco, Opel CEO, Karl-Friedrich Stracke, outlined some of what he saw as Opel’s strengths, such as the new alliance with PSA Peugeot Citroen, but also its challenges in Germany.
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“For our home market we have proposed a dedicated plan,” he said. “We are in active negotiations in Germany to address our capacity challenge.
“We have made great steps forward working with the Works Council and IG Metall and to reduce our dependence on imported components. We could [also] see production of non-Opel products in our plants.”
That “capacity challenge” has recently seen Vauxhall awarded work for the next generation Astra at its Ellesmere Port plant in North West England, as the lead site along with Gliwice in Poland, a decision that has set alarm bells ringing in Germany.
There have been suggestions in Germany the deal for Vauxhall was sweetened with subsidies – a situation Vauxhall managing director Duncan Aldred gives short shrift – with the speculation spotlight now falling on the Bochum plant for any potential cutbacks.
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By GlobalDataThe Opel CEO conceded the brand had “lost a bit of our customer base,” by moving it too quickly “up in the ranks,” and insisted it now needed more focus. “The customer needs to know what Opel stands for,” he said.
And responding to comments Opel parent General Motors could ditch its struggling European division, Stracke delivered a defiant insistence Detroit would keep faith with Russelsheim.
“We have been in Europe for more than 150 years,” he said. “Europe is on the forefront for GM – there is more to come – every party is engaged to help us be profitable as soon as possible.
“The return to prosperity – this is a promise to our customers, suppliers and dealers.”
