STRASBOURG, Feb 2 (Reuters) - PSA Peugeot Citroen will pull out of a buildings service and maintenance joint venture with Veolia Environnement at three of its sites in eastern France, the CGT union told Reuters.
Since 2004, France's largest car manufacturer has outsourced building maintenance, water treatment, cleaning and air supply to the Societe d'environnement et de services de l'est (Sense), a joint venture employing 1,050 workers.
The carmaker is set to announce on Friday during an extraordinary works council meeting that it has decided to sell its entire holding, or 60 percent of the joint venture, to water and waste management group Veolia.
PSA and Sense were not immediately available for comment.
'We're surprised,' Michel Seguin, CGT secretary, told Reuters, adding that he saw the decision as part of CEO Christian Streiff's plan to 'reduce reach at all levels' in the context of a global automobile sales slump.
The sale will only raise 300,000 euros ($383,300), according to documents given to unions, but will allow the company to make savings on non-strategic activities.
(Reporting by Gilbert Reilhac; Writing by Helen Massy-Beresford; Editing by Brian Moss) ($1=.7827 Euro) Keywords: PEUGEOT VEOLIA/ (helen.beresford@thomsonreuters.com; +33 1 49 49 56 83; Reuters Messaging: helen.beresford.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
Since 2004, France's largest car manufacturer has outsourced building maintenance, water treatment, cleaning and air supply to the Societe d'environnement et de services de l'est (Sense), a joint venture employing 1,050 workers.
The carmaker is set to announce on Friday during an extraordinary works council meeting that it has decided to sell its entire holding, or 60 percent of the joint venture, to water and waste management group Veolia.
PSA and Sense were not immediately available for comment.
'We're surprised,' Michel Seguin, CGT secretary, told Reuters, adding that he saw the decision as part of CEO Christian Streiff's plan to 'reduce reach at all levels' in the context of a global automobile sales slump.
The sale will only raise 300,000 euros ($383,300), according to documents given to unions, but will allow the company to make savings on non-strategic activities.
(Reporting by Gilbert Reilhac; Writing by Helen Massy-Beresford; Editing by Brian Moss) ($1=.7827 Euro) Keywords: PEUGEOT VEOLIA/ (helen.beresford@thomsonreuters.com; +33 1 49 49 56 83; Reuters Messaging: helen.beresford.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.