Marchionne on Opel: If you have a better offer, take it

Stung by German government criticism of FIat’s offer for GM’s struggling European brands, Fiat (and soon to be Chrysler) CEO Sergio Marchionne was quick to respond.

In an interview with The Economist, Marchionne said, “I’m offering the German government a car business that will be effectively debt-free and I will take on Opel’s liabilities, including pensions. I told them: if you have a better offer, take it.”

Marchionne was answering complaints made by the governments of some of the German states that Fiat had not yet provided a persuasive plan to merge the car companies.

Fiat is competing with Canadian mega-supplier Magna International to gain control of GM’s Opel and Vauxhall brands and is also entertaining a bid for Saab. Marchionne believes the combination of Opel and Fiat will produce benefits more quickly than the alliance with Chrysler.

“We can achieve convergence on all the big platforms by 2012. Ultimately, I need to do this with Chrysler, but Opel gets me there much faster and with more immediate returns.”

Fiat could use Opel’s larger C and D platforms to augment its own small car offerings and save a potential $1.35 billion annually. Marchionne has said he will keep Opel’s German factories in Bochum, Eisenach and Ruesselsheim open, though the Vauxhall works in Ellesmere Port, England and the Opel plant in Antwerp, Belgium might be closed. Marchionne has already said he would close the Opel engine and parts plant in Kaiserslautern, Germany, which employs 3,500 workers.

Marchionne is asking the German and other European governments to provide up to $9.45 billion in loan guarantees to cover GM’s debts and unfunded pension liabilities.