German Solar Company Offers GM €1 Billion
by Christine Lepisto, Berlin 
on 11.19.08
Image source: Chevy Volt, pre-production image with Solar World logo
Will Bail-out Prevent Development of Greener Cars?
The German company SolarWorld, offered approx. 1 billion euros (US $ 1.3 billion) in cash and credit for the German assets of Adam Opel GmbH, a unit of General Motors Corp (GM) Wednesday. General Motors European spokesperson Karin Kirchner stated that ”Opel is not for sale” and declined further comment.
Well, that may depend on whether GM gets the bail-out they are looking for.
First Green European Car Company
SolarWorld is bidding for the four German Opel plants as well as the company’s development center in Ruesselsheim (which has worked on the Chevy Volt) and the deal would be contingent upon GM completely exiting the company. SolarWorld said it would develop a new generation of energy efficient vehicles alongside current successful Opel products. “…the traditional German auto builder would offer in future especially electric and hybrid automobiles and the newest technology combining extended-range electric and combustion motors highly efficiently,” SolarWorld said.
On Monday, Opel Supervisory Board Chief Klaus Franz and other GM officials met with the German government to discuss a one billion euro loan guarantee. Chancellor Angela Merkel said her government would decide by year's end depending upon how the situation unfolds at GM. SolarWorld also wants a one-time billion euro compensation payment, or approx. 40,000 euros per worker and German Federal guarantees for their loans.
If everything lines up, SolarWorld may be the white knight, or in this case the green knight, that the German GM daughter needs to get out from under the struggling American behemoth. The end-point of the political negotiations could be the first green European car company arising from the ashes of GM
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SolarWorld Press (German)
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This goes along with my contention that the best thing that could happen to GM would be for them to be spit up into smaller companies that would fight for the new post-oil auto market.
To GM: Take the money and give up the plants. Let someone have 'em who can do some good with 'em.
To EU: Force the issue if you have to.
So they give GM 1 billion, and in exchange GM gives them Opel, and then pays the 1 billion to it's former employees.
Tell me why this would sound good to GM.
Me thinks solar world should invest in technology to reduce the cost of PV rather than start some weird car adventure.
GM is incredibly dumb. How can a company that is supposed to be running dry on cash refuse 1 billion dollars? If I were in their shoes I wouldn't be saying no to anything.
If they're banking on subsidies from the taxpayers after years of foot dragging against innovation & all the special interest groups they've sent on missions to Washington, I think they're drinking Kool-Aid.
One thing that has held true for companies in stress and needing money is that you typically have assets that nobody wants and are worth little, and you have highly prized assets worth much more.
You can sell off the ones worth much, but then what are you left with? the stuff nobody wanted.
If you sell off the assets nobody wants, you don't get much money for it.
bankruptcy might be the best way to go for GM, it's a shame the retirees get screwed on that option.
What's a solar company doing with a billion bucks?
Why would they sell the part that's making money and keep the losers? I bet if someone wanted to take Saturn off their hands they might have something to talk about or Pontiac.
BTW the employee commitments go along, the tens of thousands of pension payments, the 95% pay to the laid off workers, that sort of thing.
I bet GM doesn't want to sell Opel because the European brands with their more efficient cars are the only one with any hope to resurrect the firm.