RUESSELSHEIM, Germany - An Opel plant in Belgium faces an uncertain future as
Nick Reilly, the head of GM Europe, detailed GM’s plans to employee representatives from Opel and sister brand Vauxhall. He stressed that action is needed because “the competition in this industry is intense and getting fiercer every day.’’
“Overall, we are going to reduce our capacity by around 20 percent, and we expect to reduce the number of people by approximately 9,000,’’ he told reporters. He said that “probably between 50 and 60 percent’’ of the cuts would be in Germany.
Opel employs around 45,000 people in Europe, about 25,000 of them in Germany. Reilly made clear in meetings with German officials that Opel’s four plants in the country will remain open.
However, it is unclear whether the Antwerp, Belgium, plant will survive.
