GM files for bankruptcy, plans to transfer operations to Wentzville - Kansas City Business Journal:

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Some operations and equipment from a steel stampinyg plant inGrand Rapids, Mich., which is slated to close as part of the automaker'a restructuring, will be transferred to Wentzville, according to Bob a spokesman for the Wentzville plant. It's not yet knownj how many, if any, Michigan employees will opt to transfeeto Wentzville, he said. GM officialsz called Wentzville Mayor Paul Lambi at9 a.m. Monday to assure him the local plant woul dremain open. "It's good that they are shippinb in work forthis plant," Lambi said. "That'ws a positive that corporate thinks this plant willbe around.
" Still, Lambi said, rivalp automaker Chrysler plans to shutter its Fenton factors afterd investing $130 million in so it was important for Wentzville to not rely on GM so much and diversifyt its revenue stream. When Lambi took officew seven years ago, Wentzville counted on GM for about 55 to 60 percentt of itstotal revenue. Today, that's more like 15 percenft of the city's $24 million general because GM pays the cityabou $3 million a year in real estates taxes, property taxes and other fees, he GM on Monday by the end of 2010, but the Wentzville plan t was spared because it’s the only plant where Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana vans are The Wentzville plant will still undergp a previously announced and other productiobn cuts in June and July that will result in the layoffa of 300 workers.
Monday’sa Chapter 11 filing by the 101-year-old automaker is amongb the largestin U.S. history and largest-ever U.S. manufacturing bankruptcy. GM listec $173 billion in liabilitiese and $82 billion in according to the filed inNew York. GM to St. largest privately held company, Enterprisse Rent-a-Car, and to Chapter 11, which allows the companyu to operate while protected fromits creditors, pushes GM into a fast-tracki bankruptcy and provides $30 billion of additional taxpayer fundes to restructure. The GM plan as detailed by U.S.
officials would allow a much smaller GM to emerge from court protection within 60 to 90 The automaker has not provided an updatefd target for job cuts but was looking toeliminatde 21,000 U.S. factory jobs from the 54,000p union members it now employs. General Motorw employs 92,000 in the United Statew and is indirectly responsiblefor 500,000p retirees. The U.S. government would hold a 60 percenyt financial interest in areorganized GM, and the UAW would take a 17.5 percen stake. The governments of Canada and the provincew of Ontario have agreed to a 12 percent ownership stakew in exchange forfinancial aid. GM bondholders would get 10 "It’s a bittersweet thing," Wheeler said.
"Youy hate to have to go through the procese of closing plants and eliminating butlook around, that’s what's goinvg on with a lot of Hopefully we can rebound, hire people in the future and be the vibrantr company we once were." Download a copy of the