DETROIT: General Motors President Dan Ammann said on Monday the automaker’s troubled South Korean operations can be a “sustainable, profitable business,” if unions and the South Korean government agree quickly on a restructuring.
GM has warned Korean officials the unit faces a “cash crisis” in the first quarter without new funding. Nearly 2 trillion won ($1.88 billion) of GM Korea’s debts to its parent are due by end-March or early April, according to a regulatory filing.
“Time is short and everybody must move with urgency,” Ammann said in an interview when asked if March 31 was a deadline for action.
The state-funded South Korean Development Bank said on Monday it had begun a due-diligence review of GM’s South Korean unit as part of its decision whether to inject more capital into the money-losing operation.
GM officials have outlined plans to invest up to $2.8 billion in the South Korean operations and convert into equity about $2.7 billion in debt owed by the unit to the parent company, according to Korean government officials and a GM letter reviewed by Reuters.
Ammann said that if the automaker, the South Korean government and unions can agree on a restructuring plan “there’s investment in the business, new product programs that we’d look to allocate” to South Korea.
“It’s a classical restructuring where everybody needs to contribute something in order for everybody to end up in a better place with a sustainable, profitable business.”
New product investments would result in South Korea building vehicles that are part of GM’s global product lineup and could be sold in other markets, Ammann said.
GM on Tuesday asked South Korea to designate its factory site in the city of Bupyeong as a foreign investment zone to be eligible for corporate tax benefits, an official at Incheon Metropolitan City told Reuters.
The official declined to elaborate further on GM’s proposal.
To be eligible for the designation, manufacturers have to construct new factory facilities with foreign investment of more than $30 million, or invest more than $2 million in building or expanding research and development facilities.
General Motors president says ‘shared sacrifice’ needed to fix Korea unit
General Motors president says ‘shared sacrifice’ needed to fix Korea unit
First EU–Saudi roundtable on critical raw materials reflects shared policy commitment
RIYADH: The EU–Saudi Arabia Business and Investment Dialogue on Advancing Critical Raw Materials Value Chains, held in Riyadh as part of the Future Minerals Forum, brought together senior policymakers, industry leaders, and investors to advance strategic cooperation across critical raw materials value chains.
Organized under a Team Europe approach by the EU–GCC Cooperation on Green Transition Project, in coordination with the EU Delegation to Saudi Arabia, the European Chamber of Commerce in the Kingdom and in close cooperation with FMF, the dialogue provided a high-level platform to explore European actions under the EU Critical Raw Materials Act and ResourceEU alongside the Kingdom’s aspirations for minerals, industrial, and investment priorities.
This is in line with Saudi Vision 2030 and broader regional ambitions across the GCC, MENA, and Africa.
ResourceEU is the EU’s new strategic action plan, launched in late 2025, to secure a reliable supply of critical raw materials like lithium, rare earths, and cobalt, reducing dependency on single suppliers, such as China, by boosting domestic extraction, processing, recycling, stockpiling, and strategic partnerships with resource-rich nations.
The first ever EU–Saudi roundtable on critical raw materials was opened by the bloc’s Ambassador to the Kingdom, Christophe Farnaud, together with Saudi Deputy Minister for Mining Development Turki Al-Babtain, turning policy alignment into concrete cooperation.
Farnaud underlined the central role of international cooperation in the implementation of the EU’s critical raw materials policy framework.
“As the European Union advances the implementation of its Critical Raw Materials policy, international cooperation is indispensable to building secure, diversified, and sustainable value chains. Saudi Arabia is a key partner in this effort. This dialogue reflects our shared commitment to translate policy alignment into concrete business and investment cooperation that supports the green and digital transitions,” said the ambassador.
Discussions focused on strengthening resilient, diversified, and responsible CRM supply chains that are essential to the green and digital transitions.
Participants explored concrete opportunities for EU–Saudi cooperation across the full value chain, including exploration, mining, and processing and refining, as well as recycling, downstream manufacturing, and the mobilization of private investment and sustainable finance, underpinned by high environmental, social, and governance standards.
From the Saudi side, the dialogue was framed as a key contribution to the Kingdom’s industrial transformation and long-term economic diversification agenda under Vision 2030, with a strong focus on responsible resource development and global market integration.
“Developing globally competitive mineral hubs and sustainable value chains is a central pillar of Saudi Vision 2030 and the Kingdom’s industrial transformation. Our engagement with the European Union through this dialogue to strengthen upstream and downstream integration, attract high-quality investment, and advance responsible mining and processing. Enhanced cooperation with the EU, capitalizing on the demand dynamics of the EU Critical Raw Materials Act, will be key to delivering long-term value for both sides,” said Al-Babtain.
Valere Moutarlier, deputy director-general for European industry decarbonization, and directorate-general for the internal market, industry, entrepreneurship and SMEs at European Commission, said the EU Critical Raw Materials Act and ResourceEU provided a clear framework to strengthen Europe’s resilience while deepening its cooperation with international partners.
“Cooperation with Saudi Arabia is essential to advancing secure, sustainable, and diversified critical raw materials value chains. Dialogues such as this play a key role in translating policy ambitions into concrete industrial and investment cooperation,” she added.
