The fight for Opel - and the uncertainty over 5,000 Vauxhall jobs in the UK - was drawing to a close today with reports that Canadian auto-parts maker Magna has won the bidding war.

It was widely reported that Magna and its Russian partner Sberbank had reached an 11th-hour deal this morning to up their offer and find agreement with the management of General Motors.

But other sources in Germany said Belgian private equity firm RHJ International was still in the race and that until verbal agreements are signed, the uncertainty for Luton and Ellesmere Port workers in Britain goes on.

GM said it was presented with a revised draft agreement only this morning that will be reviewed by the board "over the next few days".

Before it commits itself to a deal, GM will insist that all promised EU financial support is forthcoming.

Magna enjoys overwhelming support in Germany from key players including Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Magna's offer includes equity of €500 million along with €4.5 billion in loans guaranteed by European governments.

Magna has vowed in the past to retain all four Opel plants in Germany while the company offered no guarantees on other European plants, including Ellesmere Port and Luton.

"Under our concept the German sites are seen as assets and we want to keep as many jobs as possible," Magna boss Siegfried Wolf said.

Yesterday Ms Merkel offered personally to step into negotiations if the interested bidders thought "that would smooth things along".

Her spokesman Ulrich Wilhelm reiterated that Berlin's preference is for Magna and that the billions in loan guarantees are there.

Complicating matters has been GM's stance in the past that it favoured the RHJ bid.

Sources close to all parties say they may come back with a better offer in the light of today's developments.

US President Barack Obama's administration, which holds a majority stake in GM, has said it will not get involved in the talks.

Earlier this month Magna announced a $205 million second-quarter loss as the global car industry remained in the doldrums due to the downturn.

Just a week ago John Smith, GM's chief negotiator with Magna and Sberbank, said that "little progress was made" in recent talks on issues such as intellectual property and access to the Russian market. The discussions had even brought about "the return of some issues" previously considered to be resolved.

Now that those hurdles seem to have been cleared, a deal could be just days away.