R.I.P.: General Motors Announces the Death of SAAB

Just moments ago, General Motors announced that it will be closing down its money-losing SAAB unit after concluding that the sale of the Swedish brand to tiny Dutch supercar maker, Spyker Cars, could not be completed in the time frame that had been set.

"Despite the best efforts of all involved, it has become very clear that the due diligence required to complete this complex transaction could not be executed in a reasonable time. In order to maintain operations, Saab needed a quick resolution. We regret that we were not able to complete this transaction with Spyker Cars," said GM Europe President Nick Reilly.

General Motors had turned to Spyker Cars after a failed effort to sell the Swedish brand to a consortium led by the Koenigsegg Group AB.

The Detroit automaker said that Saab will continue to honor warranties, while providing service and spare parts to current owners around the world.

"We will work closely with the Saab organization to wind down the business in an orderly and responsible manner," Reilly said. "This is not a bankruptcy or forced liquidation process. Consequently, we expect Saab to satisfy debts including supplier payments, and to wind down production and the distribution channel in an orderly manner while looking after our customers."

What GM did not say, is what's going to happen with the Swedish firm's upcoming models such as the all-new 9-5 sedan and the Cadillac SRX-based, 9-4x.

Earlier this week, the Detroit automaker revealed that it had come to an agreement with China's BAIC for the sale of the intellectual rights of the current-generation Saab 9-5 (not the 2010 model shown in Frankfurt) and certain 9-3 models.

Saab follows the same fate as several other GM-owned brands such as Pontiac and Saturn which were also axed.

China's BAIC Buys Equipment for Old 9-5 from SAAB, According to Swedish Newspaper

Citing unnamed sources, Sweden's Ny Teknik newspaper reported today on its website that Saab has sold the production tools for its outgoing 9-5 model to China's Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Corp. (BAIC). Saab refused to confirm or deny the report. "I cannot comment on it", Saab's spokesperson Gunilla Gustavs told the newspaper. The report, however, claims that the sale is a done deal.

BAIC had joined forces with Koenigsegg Group AB to acquire Saab from GM. After Koenigsegg pulled out of the talks, it was reported that BAIC may either go solo and make an offer for Saab on its own, or, more likely, make a bid for the Swedish firm's assets.

Earlier this week, General Motors stated that it would accept new offers for its Saab division until the end of December, but if it did not manage to strike a deal, it would consider the option of winding down the Swedish brand.

Source: Ny Teknik

GM Sells SAAB 9-3, Current 9-5 and Other Assets to China's BAIC

It was confirmed today that General Motors has come to an agreement with Beijing Automotive Industry Holdings Co. Ltd (BAIC) for the sale of certain key assets from SAAB. BAIC, China's fifth-largest automaker, bought the intellectual rights for Saab's current 9-5 and certain 9-3s as well as some powertrain technology and tooling equipment. The agreement does not include the new 9-5 saloon that's based on the Opel Insignia.

The deal will see BAIC manufacturing the current Saab 9-5 and certain 9-3 models in China while Saab will also help the automaker to integrate various technologies into future BAIC vehicles.

"This arrangement is excellent for both parties, now and for the future," said Jan Åke Jonsson, Managing Director of Saab Automobile.

"We have developed a good relationship with BAIC and look forward to working with them to integrate this Saab technology into their future vehicles," he added.

General Motors said that the deal with BAIC does not compromise in any way the sale of Saab to a new owner.

GM to Entertain New Offers for SAAB until the End of December

General Motors is still on the lookout for a new owner for its Saab unit, the company confirmed on Tuesday. The Detroit automaker said that the firm's Board of Directors have received "expressions of interest" from a suite of buyers for its Saab unit after the termination of negotiations with the Koenigsegg Group AB.

"The Board will evaluate potential bids between now and the end of December. At that time, we will determine whether a suitable arrangement for Saab exists. If not, we will begin an orderly wind down of the global Saab business at that time," General Motors said in a prepared statement to the press.

While GM did not disclose or confirm any names, media reports claim that potential suitors for Saab include China's Beijing Automotive, which had previously agreed to buy a stake in Koenigsegg, and Holland's Spyker Cars - yes, that's the same unprofitable company that decided to move production from The Netherlands to the UK and fire a third of its staff...

REPORT: The End of the Road for SAAB?

In a similar scenario to the Saturn - Penske story which ended with GM's decision to wind down the brand, tiny super car maker Koenigsegg, backed by China's BAIC, pulled out of a deal to acquire GM's Swedish Saab unit only a week away before a November 30 deadline. And even though the Swedish government has some hopes that a new buyer might be found to save Saab, the future of the brand looks very dim.

"For every day that passes the challenge gets bigger and bigger," Swedish Enterprise Minister Maud Olofsson told reporters.

An insider told Bloomberg that General Motors' board will decide the future of Saab at its monthly meeting on December 1st. The person added that the automaker doesn't expect any other bidders to emerge and that a shutdown is imminent.

"They should just get rid of it," told the news site Tom Stallkamp, industrial partner at buyout firm Ripplewood Holdings LLC, which took part in an unsuccessful bid for GM's Opel division. "Saab really doesn't matter in terms of technology, and there is no synergy like there was with Opel."

Easy to say when you don't take into consideration the fact that behind the nameplate there are people with families as Saab employs around 3,500 workers in Trollhattan while thousands of other jobs are also linked to the firm. If you take a moment to think about that, it actually does matter...

Unfortunately though, the harsh reality is that if GM were to restart the sales process of Saab, it would be extremely difficult to find a willing buyer to complete the deal in a short time frame. If it were to take longer, the Detroit automaker would have to continue to fund Saab and that, doesn't seem to be a viable option for GM today.

Many like Stephen Pope, chief global strategist for Cantor Fitzgerald in London, seem to agree that Saab's days are numbered. "That's it, goodnight, goodbye," Pope told Bloomberg. "Saab has reached the end of the road, there's nothing left in the tank."

There have been reports that China's BAIC as well as Geely, might be interested in Saab. However, Geely is already in talks with Ford for its Volvo unit so we seriously doubt that they will turn their focus on Saab at this moment while in what concerns BAIC, analysts believe that the if the Chinese firm decides to show an interest, it will most likely be for Saab's assets and not the company as a whole.

Sources: Bloomberg & ANE

BREAKING NEWS: Koenigsegg Terminates Agreement to Buy SAAB from General Motors

General Motors has just announced that the proposed sale of its Saab unit to a consortium led by Swedish sports car maker Koenigsegg has been canceled. And this time, it's not because the Detroit automaker wanted to keep Saab as was the case with Opel, but because Koenigsegg backed out of the purchasing of the Swedish brand in the same way that Penske did with Saturn.

"We're obviously very disappointed with the decision to pull out of the Saab purchase," said GM President and CEO, Fritz Henderson.

"Many have worked tirelessly over the past several months to create a sustainable plan for the future of Saab by selling the brand and its manufacturing interests to Koenigsegg Group AB. Given the sudden change in direction, we will take the next several days to assess the situation and will advise on the next steps next week," Henderson added.

In September, Koenigsegg Group AB had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Beijing Automotive Industry Holdings Co. Ltd. (BAIC) to explore growth opportunities in the Chinese and international markets for the products of both SAAB and BAIC.

The Swedish sports car maker has yet to release an official statement on the matter.