After months of speculation, it looks like Saab has been rescued from the brink of disaster as a new deal, could see it emerge from the bankruptcy process it entered earlier this year.
Swedish sports car maker Koenigsegg, have signed what’s referred to as a ‘memorandum of understanding’ with General Motors to purchase the Saab brand.
Assuming the agreement is completed, it means Saab’s new generation 9-5 will go ahead and be produced at the current production plant in Trollhättan, Sweden
The purchase of Saab from G.M. should be completed by the end of the third quarter of 2009 and is going to include $600 million from the European Investment Bank, which we understand, will be guaranteed by the Swedish government, despite a plea for help from the government being turned down earlier in the year and the Swedish Industry Minister being quoted as saying “The Swedish state and taxpayers in Sweden will not own car factories.
The agreement is likely to see Additional support being provided by GM and Koenigsegg to fund Saab’s operations.
This agreement is crucial to Saabs survival, and for exiting the bankruptcy process and it seems to be Saab’s best chance of a strong future and industry insiders believe that the deal is all but done.
Saab have always been a kind of quirky, niche brand, but its one that’s enjoyed a very loyal customer base and with its plans to introduce several new models very shortly, its one with huge potential also.
There is no doubt that Saab have gone through hard times recently, with many UK leasing companies refusing to write Saab business due to the uncertainty of what the future held for Saab, but that’s changing now and as a fair part of Saab’s customers were business users, it’s a change that needs to happen.
So what about its new owners Koenigsegg ?
Surprisingly, there is a Mr Christian Von Koenigsegg and he is clearly a very innovative young man and indeed, he was only 22 years old when he started his car company back in 1994, which pretty much only puts him a 37 years old today.
Operating from an ex Swedish Air Force fighter base in southern Sweden, near the city Ängelholm, the facilty is perfect for the development of the high speed sports cars that Koenigsegg build, as it comes with a 1.7km runway, which as its 50m wide, can double as a race circuit also.
The surprise comes when you realise that Koenigsegg only have 45 full time staff and a few part timers, but between them, they take care of everything, from R&D right through the build process to PR, administration, sales and management, so it certainly looks like the tail is wagging the dog with this ambitious take over of its much bigger brother.
That said, read anything about Christian Von Koenigsegg and you just know this is going to work, as he seems a remarkably talented young man.
The proposed agreement will see GM continuing to supply Saab with architecture and powertrain technology during a defined time period.
