REFILE-German VW seeks access to U.S. loans to carmakers
(Corrects spelling of "federal" in fifth paragraph and "Chrysler" in last paragraph)
PARIS, Oct 2 (Reuters) - German automaker Volkswagen (VOWG.DE), which plans to start making cars at a U.S. plant in Tennessee, wants to benefit from U.S. government aid to the domestic car industry, its chief executive said.
"We will raise our hand when the time comes," Martin Winterkorn told reporters at the Paris car show late on Wednesday, adding Europe's biggest carmaker should also get access to the programme to avoid skewing competition.
U.S. President George W. Bush on Tuesday signed into law a mammoth spending bill to keep the government running until early March 2009 that includes a $25 billion loan package for troubled automakers.
The bill sets aside $7.5 billion in taxpayer funds needed to guarantee $25 billion in low-interest loans to help General Motors Corp GM.N, Ford Motor Co (F.N) and Chrysler LLC produce more fuel-efficient cars and trucks.
U.S. automakers have said the taxpayer-backed loan package would give them access to capital at a time when credit markets are shut and they are being driven to invest in new federal fuel economy standards.
The $25 billion loan package, the biggest federal subsidy for the auto industry since the 1980 bailout of Chrysler, cleared Congress last weekend when the focus was on the debate over the $700 billion financial rescue package.
GM, Ford and Chrysler had said they could manage without the federal loans but also suggested that without the federal subsidy thousands more jobs could be at risk. (Reporting by Christiaan Hetzner) (michael.shields@thomsonreuters.com, Reuters Messaging: michael.shields.reuters.com@reuters.net; +49 69 7565 1266))
