Spyker in last-ditch talks to buy Saab

Published: December 16 2009 19:37 | Last updated: December 16 2009 19:37

Executives from Spyker Cars were in Stockholm on Wednesday trying to thrash out a deal to buy Saab Automobile after General Motors said the Dutch sports car maker was the only remaining bidder for its struggling Swedish unit.

DECEMBER 15, 2009, 11:17 A.M. ET
UPDATE: Spyker The Only Contender For Remaining Saab Assets

General Motors Co. (GM) Tuesday said that Dutch sports-car manufacturer Spyker Car NV (SPYKR.AE) was the only remaining bidder for the remaining assets of Swedish unit Saab.

The announcement came as the Swedish government said it had been given the go-ahead to analyze an approach from a lead bidder--confirmed to be Spyker--as it considers a request to act as guarantor to EUR400 million in European Investment Bank loans to Saab.

GM's has struggled to seal a deal to sell loss-making Saab. It had picked Swedish sports car maker Koenigsegg Group AB as its preferred bidder, but Koenigsegg pulled out last month because it was taking too long to line up financing.

Earlier this week, China's Beijing Automotive Industry Holdings Co. bought intellectual property rights for some Saab 9-3 models, the current 9-5 models, as well as powertrain technology and tooling. It will use the equipment to build its own models.

Expressing the difficulty in selling the bulk of the Saab operations, GM interim Chief Executive Ed Whitacre said Tuesday he was "keeping my fingers crossed" for a deal.

Saab, like other GM divisions, fell into financial turmoil earlier this year as a global slowdown in the auto industry aggravated its existing balance-sheet problems. The Swedish unit filed for protection from its creditors in February, exiting in the summer after reaching an agreement with creditors to write off about 75% of its debt.

Spyker is being backed by its biggest investor, Russian banking group Convers Group, in its bid for Saab. While it will likely get Swedish government guarantees for a EUR400 million loan from the EIB, it will also have to find more financing and that may prove a problem for Spyker.

Spyker produced 43 cars in 2008, selling 37 and earning revenues of EUR7.9 million. However, it has been loss making ever since the company went public in May 2004. In the first half of 2009 its net loss was EUR8.7 million, about the same as last year.

Like car makers the world over, it has been hit by the economic downturn over the past two years. Earlier this month it announced that it was moving production from the Netherlands to Coventry in the U.K., where its major supplier is based, to try and cut costs.

Spyker declined to comment on how it will finance the acquisition of Saab.

Swedish State Secretary Joran Hagglund, the government's main liaison with the auto industry, said GM is working to complete a deal before the end-of-year deadline.

It's a brand with so many enthusiasts.

Saab lovers rally to save brand as GM board meets

Tue Jan 5, 2010

DETROIT, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Saab enthusiasts rallied on Tuesday afternoon next to their beloved cars holding "Save Saab" signs that they hoped the General Motors Co [GM.UL] board of directors meeting 39 floors above could see.

The gathering of Saabs and their owners in a parking lot next to GM headquarters took place as the board considers whether to kill the unprofitable brand or sell it.

Ryan Emge, who runs the website SaabHistory.com from Portland, Maine, organized the low-key rally.

"At one point, we all turned around to show our signs to the people at GM," said Emge. "If the board saw them, I don't know. I hope they were paying attention."

Saab has a devoted following, but the Swedish brand has consistently lost money for GM in its 20-year ownership.

A Saab is the only car she ever wanted to own

Five days ago, Drive On told you about the hardy 28 Saab owners who drove from around the country to Detroit to demonstrate in front of General Motors' headquarters in hopes that the automaker will relent and save Saab.

Well, things aren't looking particularly good on the Saab front, but we thought you'd like to meet one of the owners who struck up a conversation with Drive On's Sharon Silke Carty as they froze together in a downtown parking lot last week.

Suzanne Shelata has only ever bought one brand-new car: A 1997 Saab 9-3 convertible. She fell in love with it instantly, but realized she didn't have enough cash to buy it. So she went job hunting.



"First I found the car, then I found a job," says the Hamburg, Michigan, resident. "And it's the only car I ever want to own."

The car has become more than a car to Shelata. It's a cause.

"I want to see Saab live. I think it would be such a loss," said Shelata says.

DETROIT (Reuters) - General Motors Co sent its clearest signal yet on Monday that none of the bidders for Saab had submitted an offer that would prompt the automaker to reverse a decision to shut down the Swedish luxury brand.

"We're closing down Saab," GM Chairman and acting Chief Executive Ed Whitacre told reporters on the sidelines of the Detroit auto show. "We're winding it down."