GM’s Barra, Ammann Meet Opel Officials

General Motors Co. CEO Mary Barra and President Dan Ammann have been meeting today with executives of its money-losing Adam Opel unit to discuss GM’s talks to sell the unit to PSA Group.

Barra also told Opel employees that combining Opel and PSA would bring benefits to both companies. She offered no specifics, saying that discussions about a would-be merger aren’t at that point yet.

News yesterday of a possible deal has triggered fears that a merger would lead to significant job cuts in Germany, where Opel operates three assembly plants, and the U.K., where two factories support the unit’s Vauxhall brand. The company—which employs about 38,000 people in Europe—also operates manufacturing plants in Austria, Hungary, Poland and Spain.

PSA CEO Carlos Tavares says he is eager to confer with German Chancellor Angela Merkel about the would-be acquisition. GM is in similar talks now with government officials in Germany and the U.K.

Tavares, fresh from leading a successful turnaround at PSA, is known as an effective cost cutter. GM, which acquired Opel in 1929, has lost some €19 billion ($20 billion) on the company over the past 17 years. Analysts say Opel has an enterprise value of roughly €2.6 billion ($2.8 billion).