General Motors has once again stated that it will not sell or close Opel, despite continuing losses in Europe. GM’s CEO Dan Ackerson this week told Opel’s 5,000 employees that he was not about to “cut and run”, saying that Opel was crucial to GM’s global success. In fact, Ackerson committed to grow the Opel brand , even though rumours persist that a merger deal with PSA’s equally troubled Peugeot and Citroen brands is in the offing. Opel is currently working on a massive 23 new models, including the new Adam city car, the four-door version of the Astra saloon (which has just been launched in Ireland) and the Mokka compact SUV, a rival to the Nissan Juke and Mini Countryman.
For all its problems and its $16 billion (€12.4bn) losses, Opel is seen within GM as crucial for its low-Co2 technology experience and its design and engineering expertise.