FRANKFURT, Germany- General Motors plans to build midsize cars for PSA Peugeot Citroen, while the French car maker will come up with a compact model for Opel – a GM brand – as part of their new alliance. This was according to press reports published Thursday.
According to the plan, GM will build a replacement for the midsize sedan model Citroen C5, said Jean-Luc Perrard, head of the factory that the French firm has in Rennes, in an interview with regional daily Ouest France.
Peugeot also plans to assemble the Opel Zafira compact minivan in return to support to GM, saving hundreds of employees from layoffs in the development center in Ruesselsheim company, reported Thursday by the German, magazine Der Spiegel.
Peugeot chief executive, Philippe Varin, said in March that the core of the alliance plan involved arming Peugeot plants in the U.S. firm with mid-size cars and smaller GM models based on Peugeot vehicles in GM factories.
Opel denied that the alliance with Peugeot is causing layoffs in its development unit.
“No jobs will be lost in the technical development center for Opel. However, joint projects will be divided precisely at the end,” said Opel CEO, Karl-Friedrich Stracke in a statement. This statement was issued after rumors of massive layoffs spread because of the impending partnership.
