The Russian government will not exert a direct influence on the operations of Opel following the acquisition of a stake by state-owned Sberbank, the bank said on Monday. Last Thursday, the U.S. auto giant General Motors took a long-awaited decision to sell Opel to a consortium led by the Austrian-Canadian parts supplier Magna with Russia's largest bank. The decision was approved by the Opel board and the German government.
"The Russian government will not exert direct influence on Opel," said Sberbank CEO German Gref.
Under the deal, the Magna-Sberbank consortium will own a 55% stake in Opel on a parity basis, and the German carmaker will control 10% with GM retaining 35%. The new owners are set to leave the Opel plants in Germany intact, but plan to close two European production sites, including one in Belgium.
Magna's co-CEO, Siegfried Wolf, said on Monday that the consortium plans to reduce the workforce at Opel plants by a total of 10,500, including 4,000 in Germany.
Earlier reports said some 11,600 workers in Europe were expected to lose their jobs, including 3,000 in Germany.
Wolf also clarified earlier reports that the German government would underwrite 600 million euros ($874 mln) of investment in the Russian car industry, saying the funds would be an independent investment by Opel.
Dirk Pfeil, one of Opel's trustees, said earlier that the sum would go towards the modernization of the sector.
Wolf also said 170 million euros ($248 mln) would be spent on a program to develop the General Motors plant in St. Petersburg.
