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Doubts raised over Opel plan

Frankfurt - The German economy ministry has doubts about a restructuring plan presented by Opel, which wants Berlin to help finance a turnaround, a press report said on Friday.

"There are reasons to doubt the viability" of Opel's plan, according to an internal ministry document quoted by the magazine Der Spiegel in its edition to appear on Monday.

Parts of the article were released in advance.

In particular, 8 300 job cuts, of which almost half are slated to take place in Germany, appear to be "not fully justified," the note said.

German officials also fear some of the reportedly €1.5bn in aid requested by Opel could be paid to its US parent group General Motors in the form of operating license fees, Spiegel said.

The economy ministry was not immediately available for comment.

In an interview published on Friday by the Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper, Economy Minister Rainer Bruederle noted simply that he had an "obligation to examine all requests (for aid) according to currently accepted criteria."

Bruederle called on European Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia "to make a critical study of whether the concept is viable and if competition distorsions can be ruled out in Europe" before making a decision.

Opel is seeing €2.7bn in financing from several European countries where Opel and its British sister brand Vauxhall operate.

- AFP

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