GAZ has confirmed its interest in participating in a consortium involving Magna in a possible bid for GM’s Opel operations.
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Magna faces competition from Fiat for GM’s European assets – a competition that could intensify now that Chapter 11 bankruptcy for GM’ s US operations is looking more likely.
However, GAZ is apparently taking a cautious approach.
“The role of GAZ Group in the project would potentially consist of organising manufacturing of passenger cars on its modern high-tech passenger car production site built in the Nizhny Novgorod plant in 2008,” the company said in a statement.
“GAZ Group has a positive record of collaborating with Magna International and General Motors Europe on project development for the manufacture of “popular cars” for Russia and CIS markets,” it said.
Russia’s prime minister Vladimir Putin has said that the Russian state will not interfere in any possible negotiations between GM and GAZ, though analysts note that the Kremlin is keeping an eye on developments.
Putin said last week Magna had approached Russian banks and GAZ about a possible joint bid for Opel.
GAZ is controlled by Basic Element, the investment holding of Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska and it is currently burdened with heavy debt and the impact of recession in the Russian market.
Media reports over the weekend said both Magna and Fiat have presented proposals for Opel to the German government.
Late last week, Magna’s Canadian-Austrian-Russian plan for Opel emerged with a German daily citing company sources as saying Magna International wanted to create a European-Russian automaker making up to 5m cars a year.
GM CEO Fritz Henderson said yesterday that GM aims to choose a preferred bidder for its European operations by the end of May, echoing recent remarks from Fiat’s Sergio Marchionne suggesting that a deal in May is being aimed for.
