AURORA, ON, Canada and MOSCOW, Russia, July 21 /CNW/ - Magna
International Inc. ("Magna") (TSX: MG.A, NYSE: MGA) and Savings Bank of the
Russian Federation ("Sberbank") (RTS: SBER, MISEX: SBER03) today announced
that Magna and Sberbank have jointly submitted a revised offer to acquire a
55% interest in Adam Opel GmbH ("Opel") as part of a proposed solution that is
intended to assure the long-term viability of Opel. Under the offer, the
acquired 55% interest in Opel would be owned by a 50:50 Magna/Sberbank
consortium ("Consortium"), with General Motors Company ("General Motors")
retaining a 35% interest and Opel employees acquiring 10% as part of a new
labour framework. The offer was made in response to a request by General
Motors for final offers regarding Opel. The offer contemplates a total equity
investment by the Consortium of Euro 500 million over time.
General Motors is expected to review all submitted offers for Opel and
determine the next steps in the sale process.
If the offer is successful, any transaction between the Consortium and
General Motors would still be subject to finalization of definitive agreements
and other conditions, including government-backed financing. Therefore, there
is no assurance at this time that any transaction will result from the current
involvement of Magna and Sberbank.
If the Consortium is successful in completing the acquisition, Magna will
put in place appropriate "firewalls" to ensure that its current business will
operate independently from Opel.
MAGNA FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
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This press release may contain statements that, to the extent that they
are not recitations of historical fact, constitute "forward-looking
statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation.
Forward-looking statements may include financial and other projections, as
well as statements regarding our future plans, objectives or economic
performance, or the assumptions underlying any of the foregoing. We use words
such as "may", "would", "could", "will", "likely", "expect", "anticipate",
"believe", "intend", "plan", "forecast", "project", "estimate" and similar
expressions to identify forward-looking statements. Any such forward-looking
statements are based on assumptions and analyses made by us in light of our
experience and our perception of historical trends, current conditions and
expected future developments, as well as other factors we believe are
appropriate in the circumstances.
