A day after filing for bankruptcy protection, General Motors Corp. on Tuesday moved quickly on two major matters: striking a deal to sell its Hummer brand to an industrial company in China and offering do-or-die operating agreements to U.S. dealers it has marked for closing. The automaker filed for Chapter 11 on Monday, a process that will leave it nearly 61percent owned by the federal government and unburdened of nearly three-quarters of its debt. GM said it has an agreement to sell Hummer to Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Co. It did not disclose the price or other terms but said it expected the deal to close in the third quarter. Tengzhong, which builds industrial machinery, said it plans to keep Hummer's senior management and the auto company's existing dealer agreements. The Chinese company said it plans to reach a long-term contract assembly and key component and material supply agreement with GM. That would secure more than 3,000 U.S. jobs, GM said. But the automaker also cautioned that the deal was subject to final negotiations. Based in the Chinese province of Sichuan, Tengzhong is a privately owned company that makes road, construction and energy industry equipment. It said it is looking to grow Hummer both in the U.S. and overseas markets, particularly China. Hummer 'is synonymous with adventure, freedom and exhilaration, and we plan to continue that heritage by investing in the business,' Yang Yi, chief executive of Tengzhong, said in a statement. The Hummer brand, once a cash cow for GM, came to represent a symbol of the company's misdirected priorities and lack of balance as gasoline prices spiked at more than $4 a gallon a year ago and activists vandalized Hummer dealerships. Still, Hummer has a nationwide network of dealers and a highly loyal customer base, and it could be an attractive toehold in the U.S. market for a foreign buyer without a distribution structure in the world's largest auto market. The sale was coordinated with the help of Citigroup Inc., the automaker said. Separately, GM said its U.S. dealers started receiving letters Tuesday offering them deals to operate under strict new rules or face termination of their franchises in court. Some 1,100 dealers the automaker previously identified for elimination will be offered unspecified cash settlements to wind down their franchises, while most of GM's other 5,000 dealers will be asked to comply with tough standards going forward or face a similar fate. GM has a goal of reducing its dealership network to 3,600 outlets by the end of next year. (Optional add end) GM has been trying to sell the Hummer brand for a year and had disclosed it was in negotiations with three interested parties this spring. 'I'm confident that Hummer will thrive globally under its new ownership,' said Troy Clarke, GM head of North American operations. 'This sale continues to accelerate the reinvention of GM into a leaner, more focused and more cost-competitive automaker.' In addition to Hummer, GM is attempting to sell or wind down its Saturn and Saab brands. It will close down Pontiac completely and close down dealers holding Pontiac franchises. Saturn and its distribution network also filed for bankruptcy protection Monday. GM is also pursuing the sale of its European Adam Opel unit, consisting of the Opel and Vauxhall brands, to Canadian parts maker Magna International. The automaker's bankruptcy process is expected to take two to three months, after which the government will hold a 60.8 percent stake in GM. The government of Canada, which is lending up to $9.5 billion to GM, will own 11.7 percent. The United Auto Workers will have 17.5 percent of the new company, and holders of $27 billion in the automaker's bonds will receive a 10 percent stake in exchange for forgiving their debt. GM is in the process of selecting a new board of directors. The automaker said that five of the current 12 directors would stay on with the company. The UAW will have the right to seat one new board member, but all seats will get final approval from the federal government. It is not yet clear whether interim Chairman Kent Kresa will continue in that role. His predecessor, Rick Wagoner, was also chief executive, a position now held by Fritz Henderson. As with Chrysler, which filed for bankruptcy in April, GM intends to sell its viable assets to a new company, leaving its troubled assets behind. Unlike Chrysler, which is merging with Italian automaker Fiat, GM has no suitor. Instead, it will emerge as a privately held company, with expectations of returning to the public markets in the first half of next year. 