Chinese BAIC joins bid for GM Europe
CHINA’S Beijing Automotive Industry Corporation (BAIC) yesterday offered to invest €660m (£570m) in GM Europe in return for a 51 per cent stake.
The state-owned Chinese group’s offer is likely to involve plans to expand operations inside China, the world’s largest car market. The deal would need €2.64bn of state-guaranteed loans.
BAIC would also look to cut 7,600 Opel jobs in Europe, rather than at Vauxhall in the UK.
GM wants to sell a major stake in Opel and Vauxhall as part of its restructuring after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the US.
A consortium led by Canadian group Magna and Russian bank Sberbank is the preferred bidder, but GM is still open to other offers.