on Tuesday, a subsidiary of Peugeot, Opel has announced that it will offer the German workers voluntary dismissal, in an attempt to stay afloat in the face of falling demand and program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the EU.
"the Program of voluntary dismissal ... limited to a maximum of 2100 posts", - stated in the message of the company.
At the same time, the main Opel plant in rüsselsheim will be converted for the production of the Astra sedan next generation with an internal combustion engine and a hybrid version, "which provides perspective on many years of production."
After several years of losses running GM in 2018 Opel has returned to profit under the new owner, having sold nearly a million cars.
German carmaker Peugeot which acquired American General Motors, since the change of ownership is reduced nearly 7 000 of the 19 000 jobs, blaming flagging demand in the world market.
Together with the problems with sales of Opel highlighted "the increasingly stringent regulations of emissions of CO2 (carbon dioxide) faced by the entire automotive industry," as the main reasons for the cuts.
Starting this year, manufacturers in the EU should reach the average level of emissions of CO2 for their new fleets of less than 95 grams per kilometre, under threat of severe penalties.
Major German automakers have announced 40,000 jobs in the coming years - half of them only Daimler and Audi - as the industry tries to adapt to changes, including switching to less labour-intensive cars.
In General, the transition to electric vehicles by 2030 could to cause loss 410 000 jobs in Germany alone.
