PSA CEO Has “No Regrets” Over Opel, Vauxhall Purchase
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General Motors officially closed a deal to sell Opel and Vauxhall to France’s PSA Groupe in 2017, and despite some bumps along the way, PSA CEO Carlos Tavares said he has “no regrets” over the automaker’s purchase.
He remains confident that PSA will chart a profitable path forward for both the German and British brands, per an Automotive News interview published on Sunday.
The CEO added that Opel is stable now after losing $460 million in 2017. PSA managed to cut the losses to $222 million during the final five months of 2017. We know the French conglomerate plans for Opel to turn its first profit in 2020 with a 2 percent operating margin, and then hopes to see a 6 percent operating margin in 2026. Synergies between PSA’s brands will help save Opel $2.1 billion.
PSA Groupe purchased both brands and GM’s European manufacturing footprint for $2.7 billion last year, though PSA quickly realized Opel and Vauxhall were far behind upcoming European Union emission regulations. PSA reportedly requested a refund from GM after discovering how poorly equipped the future Opel lineup was with looming regulations. PSA will also replace the Opel Ampera-e (Chevrolet Bolt EV) with an Opel Corsa EV.
And Tavares has plans to take Opel global. In markets that may be turned off by the prospect of owning a French car, Opel’s German roots may help PSA expand to the United States and beyond.
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Where Ms. Mary Barra failed, Carlos succeeds.
#Qanon
And GM has no regrets on the sale.
Carlos is an industry genius, has done wonders for PSA. GM could have saved Europe had they cut fixed costs like PSA and Ford and not woried about PR. Opel and Vauxhall technology helped GM competitive in quality.
Carlos and PSA would be fantastic FCA merger partners when Sergio steps down. This would create a great dealer network for Opel in the US.