Minister of Commerce, Industry and Energy Shin Kook-hwan says he is confident General Motors would purchase bankrupt Daewoo Motor. But he said the government would take other steps to keep the company going if the sale failed.

In an interview with a local daily, Shin said if GM does not step forward to acquire Daewoo, the government will seek independent survival measures, including the closure of the Polish and Indian plants.

He also said it would be wiser to keep the carmaker's main plant operating for another four to five years, since it contained Daewoo's core production lines.

The nation's third-ranked carmaker said Thursday that it will keep its main plant in Pupyong open but operations would be reduced.