Opel’s new caretaker chief has said he will honour commitments made to unions and employees as part of a turnaround plan.

“We’re honest and honorable business people and will abide by all existing contracts and agreements. Nothing is going to change in that respect,” Thomas Sedran told regional daily Mainzer Allgemeine Zeitung, Agence France Presse (AFP) reported.

While he was in charge, the carmaker would not steer in any new direction, Sedran promised.

On Tuesday, Opel announced that the 47-year-old corporate consultant would take over as interim chief until a permanent successor can be found for Karl-Friedrich Stracke, who quit last week.

Sedran is already responsible for operations and business strategy, a position he has held since 1 April.

Sedran formerly worked as a corporate consultant with firms such as AlixPartners and Roland Berger.

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At AlixPartners, he was division head for the auto industry and has worked closely with Opel in that function since 2009.

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