FRANKFURT, Sept 25 (Reuters) - General Motors' loss-making European brand Opel is investing 130 million euros ($175.4 million) in its German engine and parts plant in Kaiserslautern to buy new tooling and machinery, Opel said in a statement on Wednesday.
The factory, opened in 1966, will use the funds to produce body and chassis parts for the next-generation Astra compact car and Insignia mid-size car, as well as building the Euro 6 generation of 2.0 litre diesels starting in October 2014.
U.S. parent GM has pledged to invest 4 billion euros in loss-making Opel by the end of 2016 to support new model launches, renewing a commitment to its ailing European brand.
Opel has four plants in Germany - in Kaiserslautern, Ruesselsheim, Eisenach and Bochum. Earlier this year the company approved the closure of the Bochum factory, which will be the first German car plant to close in decades when production is shut down by the end of next year.