Share

GE adds jobs to boost bid for Alstom

Paris - A takeover battle for parts of French power and rail group Alstom heated up on Wednesday, with US group General Electric promising to create 1 000 jobs in France, a source close to the matter said.

After a meeting between French President Francois Hollande and GE head Jeffrey Immelt, the source said that "General Electric has undertaken to create 1 000 jobs in France."

Referring to a counter offer from German group Siemens, a French presidential source said: "We are working in the context of two proposals."

General Electric is offering €12.35bn to buy the power business of Alstom which is also a leading manufacturer of rolling stock for railways including the French TGV high-speed train.

But when the advanced stage of these talks with Alstom emerged, the government expressed alarm that control of Alstom's power industry, including some nuclear power activities, would move to the United States and that jobs would be lost.

GE already has big manufacturing activities in France, some of them next to Alstom production lines.

Alstom, which faces financial strains, had already put part of its rail activities up for sale.

The company considers that it is too small on the world market for power-generating turbines but could be the world leader in the rail sector, and has sent strong signals it prefers a deal with GE.

The government then encouraged German industrial group Siemens to make a counter offer, and Siemens is interested in acquiring the power business in exchange for handing Alstom its own rail division.

Siemens values the power activities, representing about 70% of Alstom's business, at €10.5bn to €1.0bn.

The proposed GE jobs would be in the industrial sector, the French source said on Wednesday after the second meeting between Hollande and Immelt.

This highlighted a central policy push by the Socialist government to stop a decline of French industry and reduce record high unemployment which was a factor in the latest drubbing for the Socialists in European elections on Sunday.

Earlier, sources close to the French president had said: "Today it is possible to see that the offer from General Electric is becoming clearer, has been improved, strengthened, notably concerning employment."

Last week GE extended the life of its offer by three weeks until June 23 to allow time to win over the French government.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
18.93
-0.1%
Rand - Pound
23.90
-0.0%
Rand - Euro
20.44
+0.1%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.34
+0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.1%
Platinum
904.58
+0.9%
Palladium
1,012.82
+1.1%
Gold
2,218.03
+1.1%
Silver
24.80
+0.7%
Brent-ruolie
86.09
-0.2%
Top 40
68,346
+1.0%
All Share
74,536
+0.9%
Resource 10
57,251
+2.9%
Industrial 25
103,936
+0.6%
Financial 15
16,502
-0.1%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders