GM-Opel Melodrama: Fiat Returns to the Deal

Well, possibly. Bloomberg has a story, plucked from the Italian newspaper la Repubblica, that says Fiat is preparing an offer for General Motors’ main European division, Opel. A few weeks ago, it looked like a fait accompli that Magna, a Canadian parts supplier, would get Opel. But now …

I’m not sure how seriously I take a new Fiat offer, although I’m not surprised. It could be that Fiat, which sought Opel back when it was also acquiring Chrysler, simply wants to get back into this deal, which has become complicated since GM’s new board voted down the Magna offer last week. Fiat—and now Chrysler—CEO Sergio Marchionne was ticked when Fiat was rebuffed earlier this year. Maybe he sees this as chance to reassert himself as The Man when it comes to buying beleaguered industrial enterprises.

The concern in Germany, where Opel is based, was that Fiat would close plants and cut jobs, a familiar Marchionne ploy. With elections looming this fall, the government of Chancellor Angela Merkel wanted to avoid that outcome. It has backed the Magna bid, which would preserve plants and employment. However, GM’s board has been flirting with another suitor, RHJ International, in a possible gambit to sell Opel and then buy it back, stripped of debt. And there’s a distinct whiff of politics about the whole thing, as the Obamastration’s auto task force appears to be rankling Merkel by not rubber-stamping the Magna plan.

It’s unclear when this deal will finally shake out and get done. But it gets livelier every day!