General Motors has made a £549m bid to acquire Daewoo Motor, according to unconfirmed press reports in Korea. The carmaker, which had a £3.5bn offer turned down by Daewoo creditors in 1999, is “committed to proceeding with negotiations as rapidly as possible”, according to a GM spokesman.

“Both sides are hopeful for a successful conclusion and have agreed to keep the content of their discussions confidential during this negotiation process,” he said.

Formal negotiations follow more than six months of evaluation and business plan development. The parties involved – GM, Daewoo Motor and the Korea Development Bank, acting on behalf of creditors – will now work to reach an agreement of understanding outlining the terms and conditions required for the completion of the transaction.

A Daewoo Cars UK spokesman said: “Negotiations on a price will be a drawn out process, but it will mean progress nonetheless.”

However, Daewoo unions in Korea oppose the deal. They fear GM would close several plants and make redundancies. A seven-strong union delegation this week demonstrated outside GM's Detroit head office in America.