Opel Supervisory Board Appoints Forster Chairman

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News of March 28, 2001

Opel Supervisory Board Appoints Forster Chairman

Rüsselsheim, Germany – The Supervisory Board of Adam Opel AG appointed Peter Forster as the company's new chairman and managing director, effective April 1.

Forster, 46, comes from BMW AG, where he was a Management Board member in charge of manufacturing. He replaces Robert W. Hendry, who asked to step down as chairman and managing director effective March 31.

Peter Forster

Photo: Opel/GM

Hendry remains a General Motors Corp. group vice president and will assume new responsibilities as a special adviser reporting to GM President and Chief Executive Officer Rick Wagoner in Detroit. "We are delighted to have Carl-Peter Forster heading Adam Opel AG,” Supervisory Board Chairman Hans Barth said. “He is an executive with an excellent international reputation. We have confidence in the fresh impetus and the experience he brings to us from working for other companies."

Forster is the first Adam Opel AG chairman and managing director whose career has been outside the GM/Opel organization. He holds degrees in economics and engineering.

Hans Barth also thanked Hendry for his dedication to Adam Opel AG. He particularly acknowledged the measures Hendry has taken to strengthen and reposition the Opel brand and the consistent improvement of quality, which Hendry implemented with tremendous personal commitment.

"We are very pleased to have Carl-Peter Forster join Opel and the GM global team,” Wagoner said. “ We believe Peter is the right person to lead Adam Opel AG's continued progress. In view of the key role Opel plays within GM, our entire organization is committed to working with him and Opel to bring the company back to its former strength."

GM Europe President Michael J. Burns added: "Carl-Peter Forster is an executive of extraordinary stature and I am looking forward to working together with him. He assumes responsibility for Opel in a time full of challenges. The market is more contested than ever and the success of Opel is important for the overall success of GM."

In a joint statement, Deputy Supervisory Board Chairman Dr. Thomas Klebe and General Works Council Chairman Klaus Franz said: "The Opel workforce and its representatives have high expectations of the future work of management. We will actively support Mr. Forster in his challenging new job and are looking forward to objective, fair and good cooperation. Together, we will bring the company back to success."

(March 27, 2001)

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