ZEEWOLDE, The Netherlands (8 February, 2010) – Spyker Cars N.V. announces today that Spyker has entered into a USD 25 million convertible loan agreement with an investment company owned by Heerema Holding Company Inc.
The USD 25 million loan has a 2 year term, an interest of Euribor + 10% and is convertible into shares at EUR 4 each. This loan secures the funding necessary to close the Saab transaction as the first USD 25 million has already been paid to GM on January 26, 2010. The convertible loan is conditional on SAAB receiving the EIB loan. On July 15 of this year a final payment of USD 24 million is due to GM. Spyker is confident that it will secure the funding for this second installment.
The European Commission approved the Swedish state guarantee for Saab. With respect to the approval of the Swedish state guarantee, competition commissioner Neelie Kroes said: “The state guarantee will contribute to the implementation of Saab’s business plan without giving rise to any undue distortions of competition”.
Victor Muller, Spyker’s CEO said: “We are delighted that Heerema has decided to become an investor in our company. I had the privilege to work for Pieter Heerema from 1984 through 1991, initially as his counsel, later as Director of Corporate Affairs, and we have come to know each other very well as a result. It is the intention to nominate a representative of Heerema as a member of the Supervisory Board”.
“The positive decision of the European Commission to approve the Swedish state guarantee is another major step towards closing of the Saab acquisition. We are grateful to the Commission of their willingness to work so hard on this decision within the limited time available.”
Pieter Heerema added: “Although providing convertible loans such as this one is not in the ordinary course of our business, the positive developments of the past few months involving the SAAB brand and its sympathetic connotation, together with the worldwide support of loyal customers, dealers, employees, suppliers and other stakeholders represents a unique value. This value represents much more than money alone. We are confident that when the company’s management gets the opportunity to implement the business plan we will see a good financial return on our investment as well”.
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{ 49 comments }
Great news!!
waow, what a nice couple of comments!
Good to hear that Victor and Pieter Heerema are friends, and nice to hear that SU and the campaigns played part in this decision too!
batting two for two.
Everybody UP!!
Great news, seems to be a solid company with long history and comitment. from hereema.com web site:
The Heerema Group of companies designs, fabricates, transports, installs and removes facilities for the exploitation of oil and gas at sea. For six decades, we have been serving the world
oh yeah, very good news indeed!
oh yeah, very good news indeed!
Good to see that the combined Dutch industrial forces give their practical support to a sustainable future for Saab! A collaboration in the development of bio fuel and natural gas powered engines can make Saab again a name on the forefront of new technology!
3 x Houzee!
That Vic Muller…has connections in all the right places. When we look back at this whole thing, I really believe that we’ll be happy it was Spyker and not Koenigsegg, as hard as that was to comprehend when we first heard they were bidding at the beginning of December.
You’re getting these faster than any news feed could. This is the go-to place for Saab news.
The whole offshore oil thing, while not totally PC is at least stable for the time being. Hopefully Saab will get some green cred going for it in the meantime anyway. Nice unrelenting coverage Steven.
More good news. I’m excited! Yeah the guy being involved with off-shore oil may be a little ehhh when it comes to Saab’s image, but it is money and that’s all that matters.
Cool beans.
Um… good news I guess – but Euribor+10% … That’s kind of expensive!
Add that to all the other expensive loans and Saab better start making money fast! If things go according to plan and Saab looks to make money soon I suppose Victor can refinance at better terms. If not – then it’s praying time again.
Victor Up!
correct it isn
Or, if Victor can get more investors, then that money can be used to pay off the loan. Getting the loan just allows that the payment to GM in July can be made on time, and eliminates all the media frenzy about whether the deal is “underfunded”.
Yet again….. nice to hear that the enthusiast community REALLY made an impact on how the sale is proceeding.
Saab Up!
Spyker UP !
Alright! One more week! We have had great news leading up to it.
Well done Victor and congratulations to Pieter. Though there should be no doubt about it not being
SAAB_andee and maanders:
You’re right of course. Let me rephrase that… I didn’t mean to be negative.
The fact that Victor continues to find funding from a variety of sources is actually very good news. And Heerema certainly makes me less nervous than that GEM fund. So, yes, it is good news.
And Saab/Spyker isn’t exactly credit worthy in its current shape so this type of terms (expensive) is what can be expected for now. Let’s hope he manages to follow the business plan closely enough so that he can refinance the company later, at better terms.
Another point of interest: Victor’s share of the company will get much smaller if all those convertible loans eventually turn into equity rather than repaid in cash. That makes his own personal financial situation interesting. His own funding would then be secured against a smaller part of the company. To pay back his own loans from company dividend will be a challenge. (Having said that, we know absolutely nothing about his personal loan terms or even who the funders are).
But on the whole: Victor continues to pull rabbits out of his hat, time after time. That’s encouraging for the future, even if the company structure looks a bit fragile.
Ouch, quite expensive indeed. But it more or less seals the deal, so good stuff!
This certainly is great news! But can someone explain to me just because Saab (or any other company for that matter) who is even remotely involved with the Oil & Gas industry is automatically branded as “bad”? I am grateful for the O & G industry…otherwise we would all be living in the stone age.
I think it’s easy to misunderstand the wording in the press release. I’m not sure which Euribor rate their using since there’s 15 different levels, ranging from 0.334% to 1.222%. My take is that they mean that the interest given as Euribor + 10 % means it will range from 0.3674% to 1.3442%, not 10.334% to 11.222%. Wouldn’t you agree?
‘unique value‘
for sure, for sure….
for a country with a very small land mass, little natural resources [wind and rain excluded], the dutch sure know how to make money.
Very good. And what does the Swedish press have to say now..
Fantastic news!
Let
Yep, I agree on you. We had that figured out yesterday you.
It must be Euribor X 1,10 and not Euribor + 100 basicpoints. Not a real bad deal on interest.
Sorry, I think Viking Up! is right. It is usual for variable rate mortage to indicate the interest as Euroibor + 1%.
So I think SAAB-Spyker will pay more than 10% interest.
But I don’t care that much about it.
—————————–
Still waiting for the EIB-decision.
It’s good and amazing to see all the different pieces now falling into place.
The interest is Euribor + 10% of Euribor, not Euribor + 10% of principal. Actually, this is dirt cheap as such loans go. I guess it’s an example of a friend helping a friend.
) was when he, together with a few others, bought the ailing ocean towing and salvage company Wijsmuller, turned it around and sold it again at a nice profit. The seller was…the Heerema holding.
It isn’t the first time Pieter Heerema has helped VM to get into a saddle. VM’s first major killing (in money terms, I have no knowledge of other types
The Heerema group is a solid and irreproachable business entity and quite prominent in the offshore world. Can’t imagine the media finding any serious cause to write Heerema down as they -well, some..- did/do with the GEM fund which imo doesn’t really deserve such a heavy barrage of criticism either.
Ivo
So does this money from Heerema replace the GEM money, or is this additional funding? I haven’t quite understood that yet.
So does this money from Heerema replace the GEM money, or is this additional funding? I haven’t quite understood that yet.
B
SPYKER’S SHARE UP 10.5%
THIS MORNING AFTER SECURING THE 25 MILLION USD LOAN FROM HEREEMA HOLDING Co Inc
Think we have to include Hereema Holding in our wellwishes from now on. Victor Muller have worked for them earlier I read yesterday. They have trust in Victor Muller, they have trust in SAAB.
So HEREEMA HOLDING IS NOW PART OF THE SAAB FAMILY
THANK YOU HEREEMA HOLDING- DANK U WEL (dutch thanks)
http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKLDE6180LC20100209
SAAB,SPYKER,VICTOR M,HEREEMA HOLDING – UP
GET READY TROLLHATTAN, GET READY WORLD
- SAAB IS MOVING FORWARD
“SAAB – WITH A SOUL OF IT’S OWN”
Thanks, Ante. That’s good news! This basically means that the remaining $24M are also covered, since Muller can call in GEM again if other money, with more favourable interest rates, shouldn’t present itself. And the Swedish Saab dealers are probably off the hook. (Unless they insist, of course! It would probably be a good thing to have them on board.)
Thanks, Ante. That’s good news! This basically means that the remaining $24M are also covered, since Muller can call in GEM again if other money, with more favourable interest rates, shouldn’t present itself. And the Swedish Saab dealers are probably off the hook. (Unless they insist, of course! It would probably be a good thing to have them on board.)
Maybe a little off topic, but anyhow relevant since in theory SAAB is still part of the GM / Opel family. It is reported that Open will cut 8 300 employees (out of 50 000) in a restructure program. This program will cost 3.3 billion EUR of which GM shall pay 0.6 billion EUR and the rest shall come through securities and loans from affected countries within EU (Germany, Spain, Austria and UK). [In Sweden the government is not willing to put a single EUR into SAAB but recently puts 100 million EUR into the bleeding flight carrier SAS.]
In addition, a 11 billion EUR development program shall start which shall be financed by Opel themselves.
The profit shall come in 2012 with a break-even in 2011 [some similarities with SAAB??]. See link below (in Swedish);
http://www.e24.se/business/verkstadsindustri/opel-bantar-med-8-300-anstallda_1850841.e24
A simple comparison with SAAB, Opel will then be 10 times larger than SAAB in employees, they will invest 10 times more in the development program and they will loan 10 times more than SAAB.
I wonder if they will be 10 times more successful than SAAB as well [I doubt - in the latest issue of AMS in Sweden, Fredik Huldt claims that the new Opel Insignia lacks soul of which SAAB has plenty of].
Great news- Victor does it again.
Time for: Gear up. Flaps up, Ready to fly.
Auto pilot OFF please Victor. Steer hard mate.
95 and 94x SOON – cash flow!
FLY SAAB, FLY FAST!
“Euribor + 10%” should mean the base interest plus an additional 10 percentage points. Using today’s Euribor 12 months this would be 1.227% + 10% = 11.227%. This is the established way interest is specified in agreements of this type. Expensive yes, but I believe this is the type of terms a company like Saab-Spyker can get at the moment.
If “Euribor +10%” would mean the base interest plus a 10% addition to the interest level (i.e. approx 1.35%) this would be a novel way of describing interest. I would be very happy if this was the case – then the loan would be VERY favourable, far below market rates. I don’t believe that’s the case though.
I just wrote a comment about the percentages that got stuck in moderation…
My point was that Euribor +10% means 10 percentage points above Euribor. Right now approx 11.227%.
This is the established way to describe interest in an agreement of this type. Anything else would be a novel way of describing interest.
Expensive, yes, but in Saab-Spyker’s current situation this is probably the type of terms that can be expected.
Oops.
Correct! di.se state the same and also that hereema will have 22 % of saab-spyker if the debt is converted into stocks instead of repayment…
11.227% p.a.? A bit steep for a loan between friends, don’t you think? Sounds more like loansharking to me. Even banks these days don’t charge that much. Yet, anyway… But then again, maybe the loan as such is already a token of friendship. Hard to judge, imho.
Ivo
ONE QUESTION?
Is SAAB-Spyker still waiting for the EIB loan approval?
I’m asking because I’m somehow confused about that, and after browsing on the EIB site, I’m even more confused.
http://www.eib.org/projects/pipeline/2009/20090300.htm?lang=-en
http://www.eib.org/projects/press/2009/2009-207-eib-board-approves-further-eur-600m-in-loans-for-the-automotive-industry.htm?lang=-en
Those are the only documents at the EIB site with reference about SAAB, both say that on the 21. of October of 2009 the
Well, I’ll try and ask on Friday…
I hope Muller will go on pulling green rabits out of his hat for a long time. He will need to keep doing that for some years, i think. But if some single entreprenour is gonna make this happen i bet he’s the one. This means the resellers don’t need to think about founding Saab no more? Or do i mix things up?
22% of saab spyker for 25million looks like a big bargain
It’s according to di.se. They state ceteris paribus Hereema will get a 22 % stake i the car manufacturer if the loan is converted into stocks instead of repaid.
http://di.se/Avdelningar/Artikel.aspx?stat=0&ArticleID=2010%5c02%5c09%5c370154&SectionId=BilMotor&menusection=BilMotor;BilMotornyheter
I think that the Heerema loan is a very good one. The interest rate, with the agreement that the loan is convertable into shares at a set rate gives both sides a fair deal. 10% is not excessive compared with other constructions where shareholders try to get profit by speculating on the stock market, on top of the yearly dividend. Apart from that, Heerema is putting in their practical managerial experience with a position on the supervisory board. Rest assured that they will try to work seriously on making Spyker/Saab a profitable business, this is in their own interest.
The deal will protect as well against all sorts of violent trade in shares by short term thinking investors with little interest in the long term future of Saab. Regarding the oil and gas link; companies working in this field are aware of the future and know that participating in development of fuel efficient engine technology and new sources of energy is in their own interest for survival of energy based companies in the future. Even when sea bound drilling riggs would become obsolete because of dried up oil wells, the structures in itself can possibly have a second life as fundaments for wind turbines or anchoring stations for tidal energy plants. The Dutch have developed many industries and technological innovation out of their continuous struggle with water and the seas, teaming up with the out-of-the-box thinking engineers from Saab can give very interesting future technology…..
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