Volvo has no plans for U.S. car production: chief

PARIS (Reuters) - The head of Ford Motor Co's (F.N) Volvo unit on Thursday ruled out building cars in the United States "in the foreseeable future" despite painful exchange rates that have pressured its results.

"There is too much underutilized capacity in the two plants that we have," Stephen Odell, who took over as president and chief executive of Volvo Car Corp on Wednesday, told Reuters at the Paris Auto Show.

"You have to look at how to utilize that capacity before you think about switching it ... I don't think North American production is the right thing to do," Odell said.

Odell's comments reverse an earlier position taken by Swedish predecessor Fredrik Arp, who had said publicly that Volvo had explored the possibility of building cars in the United States.

Volvo currently builds cars at plants in Torslanda, Sweden, and in Ghent, Belgium. The car maker said in June it planned to cut 2,000 jobs and eliminate a third shift at the plant in Sweden by the end of the year.

Odell, who spent the past month traveling and listening to dealers and employees about the brand before taking up his new position, said he expects to be able to announce the next steps Volvo will take to lower its fixed cost base soon.

"We should certainly be in a position by the end of October to decide what we will do and communicate it," he said.

Swedish media citing unnamed sources have reported that Volvo could cut up to 1,000 additional jobs, mainly among its white-collar work force.

Odell said beyond the cost containment, he sees plenty of opportunity to increase Volvo car sales around the world.

He also wants to sharpen the brand's profile to include styling as a key point for buyers in addition to Volvo's core values as environmentally friendly and safe transportation.

A 29-year Ford veteran who previously served as chief operating officer of Ford Europe, Odell's appointment has been seen as a reflection of the automaker's commitment to the Volvo.

Odell said he did not expect his appointment to end repeated talk that Ford would eventually sell Volvo, as it has the other brands that made up its premier auto group.

Ford has repeatedly argued that Volvo is closely integrated into the parent company, which uses the same underpinning to build the Ford Focus, the Mazda3 and the Volvo S40 to create larger economies of scale.

"The speculation will never end, and I am a realist in that regard," he said.

(Reporting by Christiaan Hetzner via Detroit newsroom, editing by Gerald E. McCormick)