General Motors is close to signing an memorandum of understanding with RHJ International, a Belgium-based industrial holding company, to sell a stake of its European division that includes Opel and Vauxhall, as talks with Magna International have hit obstacles, the Financial Times reported today. Citing a person close to the sales process, the newspaper said that RHJ improved its earlier bid and that GM was "taking it very seriously" adding that a deal could be signed within a few days.
"GM's negotiating team would love to see if we can get two very solid, definitive agreements sketched out from which to choose," the person told FT adding that RHJ's new offer would save more jobs in Germany.
The newspaper reported that one of the problems between Magna, which teamed up with Russia's GAZ and Sberbank to buy a 55 percent of Opel, and General Motors, is that the Austrian-Canadian parts supplier wants to secure access to the Detroit automaker's global technology, on behalf of its Russian partners.
Aside from Magna, it is reported that China's Beijing Automotive Industry Corp is also anticipated to present an improved offer for Opel while Fiat's bid that does not include cash, remains on the table.
