General Motors (GM) Europe has issued a statement from the works council at its plant in Figueruelas (Zaragoza) saying that it will have to go into receivership if it does not immediately secure 955 million euros to pay its current outstanding debts to suppliers and to the workforce.

The management at GM insists that it wants to continue applying its viability plan, which includes the closure of a number of plants, and in order to do so is meeting with numerous European governments in an attempt to secure resources.

According to the Spanish trade union representative, the European GM works council is urgently looking for ways to alleviate its production overcapacity in the 'least harmful' way for its workers.

The European trade unions are trying to find ways to separate GM Europe from its US parent company, which is in a dire financial situation, in order to try to guarantee the viability of the Opel/Vauxhall brand and to minimize the impact on the European plants.

Some of the measures endorsed by the European works council, that are being analysed by a specialised consultant, include a reduction in the workforce across all the company's factories, a reduction in salaries and the reinstatement of some processes that are currently outsourced.

The Government of Aragon has already provided a bank guarantee to the tune of 200 million euros at the end of last year to secure the viability of the Zaragoza plant, which is supposed to start production of the new Opel Meriva in Spring next year.

The president of GM Europe, Carl-Peter Forster announced today in an interview published by the German magazine 'Bild' that the Opel rescue plan required '3,500 job losses and salary reductions across the board, as well as state aid or direct investments to the tune of 3.3 billion euros between now and 2014'.