Nov. 25 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Co. may close its plant in Belgium and cut 5,400 German jobs as the company seeks an accord with workers to restructure its Adam Opel GmbH unit.

The future of the factory in Antwerp and 2,300 workers there is “uncertain,” Nick Reilly, Opel’s acting chief, said today after presenting a reorganization plan to representatives of 50,000 workers. While the unit’s four German sites will remain in operation, 50 percent to 60 percent of the planned 9,000 job cuts will likely impact those facilities, he said.

“We must fight hard to keep our manufacturing operations in Europe viable,” Reilly said at Opel’s base in Ruesselsheim, Germany, which will replace Zurich as GM’s regional headquarters. “Competition is intense and getting fiercer every day.”

GM aims to wring 265 million euros a year in savings from Opel’s workforce before the unit burns through its $2.5 billion in cash, which Reilly has said could happen by the end of the first quarter. The Detroit-based company plans to present union- approved proposals to European governments by the middle of next month in a bid to win aid to reduce capacity by 20 percent.

The U.S. manufacturer, which has owned Opel for 80 years, is prepared to contribute more than 500 million euros to the 3.3 billion-euro restructuring plan for its European unit, Reilly said. Government has given GM a “reasonably good response” to its inquiries about aid, he added.

Unions are unwilling to grant General Motors concessions they agreed to under a proposed takeover by Magna International Inc. unless the U.S. company accepts a broader role for workers in decision making, Klaus Franz, Opel’s top labor leader, said in a telephone interview. After the meeting with Reilly, Franz said that unions are “strongly opposed” to GM’s proposals.

Consultation

Reilly said the details of Opel’s reorganization aren’t final and that the automaker will consult with unions in an effort to reach common ground over the next two or three weeks. A working group will be established to review options for Antwerp, he said.

Opel employs 25,000 people in Germany. The Ruesselsheim plant, home to development operations and assembly of the mid- sized Insignia sedan, faces the loss of about 2,500 of its 15,300 jobs. Bochum, which produces transmissions and the Astra compact, is set to loose 1,800 positions. The other German job cuts will be at the Eisenach the Kaiserslautern plants.

The unit’s largest factory, near Zaragoza, Spain, will likely to lose 900 jobs, according to Franz. The unit’s Polish plant will be spared cuts, as will the Vauxhall brand’s Ellesmere Port factory in the U.K., though about 300 jobs posts are to go in Luton, north of London, he said.

In addition to cutting jobs, GM intends to streamline Opel’s management following the move from Zurich.

Simpler Organization

“We will simplify the organization in Europe and will no longer have two tiers of management, but just one responsible for Opel’s business located here,” Reilly said earlier today.

GM angered German politicians when it called off the sale of a majority stake in Opel to Magna, a Canadian auto-parts manufacturer, and Russian bank OAO Sberbank. Chancellor Angela Merkel had lobbied for the deal and had offered to back the 4.5 billion euros that Magna sought to restructure Opel.

GM has repaid the 400 million euros outstanding on an emergency 1.5 billion-euro loan from Germany that kept Opel solvent during the U.S. company’s bankruptcy, Reilly said today, confirming comments from Merkel yesterday. The trust that held a 65 percent stake in Opel can now be dissolved and the holding returned to GM, according to the loan’s conditions.

The decision by Koenigsegg Group AB to withdraw from an agreement to buy GM’s Sweden-based Saab brand won’t affect the plan to rescue Opel.

“We were very disappointed to hear that news last night, and obviously, we are looking at the options which we have for Saab, but it doesn’t impact Opel,” Reilly said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Chris Reiter in Berlin at creiter2@bloomberg.net; Cornelius Rahn in Ruesselsheim at mdoermer@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: November 25, 2009 13:06 EST