Court will hold oral hearing with Saab
December 13, 2011 in News
Today Saab applied for the court to hold an oral hearing on the reorganization matter. A small extension on the time was asked in order for all delegates to be able to make it to Sweden in time for the hearing. This was granted by the court. Foreign creditors will also be able to attend the hearing.
On Monday, December 19th at 13:00, the district court of Vänersborg will hold an oral hearing with Victor Muller & Rachel Pang. The court has also asked for a brief submission on extending the reorganization beyond the initial three months stipulated by law.
The basic plan to be presented to the court for Saab and Youngman is:
- An outline of the Youngman & Saab deal
- Funding of Saab within and after the reorganization
- the current status of the reorganization
The final and most crucial thing that Saab & Youngman will present is why this new deal will work when the previous ones have failed.
Peter, Sweden said on December 13, 2011
Really great to know that Rachel Pang is attending as well!
Carlo A said on December 13, 2011
Yap, very good she will be there too to show full commitment to the deal
aop said on December 13, 2011
this must be a hell of a hearing.
VM and Rachel Pang on one side and GL on the other side.
Wise to ask for this short delay if that will buy them time to prepare and secure the wages.
Fingers crossed !
Carlo A said on December 13, 2011
is Lofalk still in the picture? I guessed once he applied for the end of the reorganisation, he was out …
Snowshoe said on December 13, 2011
Why so, until the court releases him from the assignment he is in charge..
Snowshoe said on December 13, 2011
Why do you say that Lofalk is on the other side? He might disagree on some things but his responsibility is to work for the survival of Saab. Even if he has behaved as a cowboy in some respects he should still behave as the professional.
aop said on December 14, 2011
I hope he will behave as a professional. we shall see
maanders said on December 13, 2011
And this is likely very near to the last move in this chess game.
ryanonsrc said on December 13, 2011
Unfortunately, this chess game is more like a game of “Go” since it is *way* more complex (and the Chinese are involved
). As such, I think it is too complex to know when the “last” move will actually be. There have been many points along the line where if a different decision were made, the the company would have been shut down. This could be another case of Saab dodging another bullet, even if the bullets keep getting bigger (wow, I am on a roll with the analogies today 
).
At any rate, that’s not to say that Saab isn’t getting closer to the victory finish (which I happen to think they are), it’s just something any mortal couldn’t possibly tell at this point.
Khrisdk said on December 13, 2011
Somehow I am not even sure that ending reconstruction will lead directly to bankruptcy.
Too many unknowns and too many players for any predictions on anything.
And normal statistics and probability don’t seem to apply to Saab
katar1na said on December 13, 2011
And what a chess game!!
Müller understands how the asian culture works and he knows how to play with the rules. Lofalk does not, as many other west europeans does not…
In Asia, decisions takes time. And a contract is not ever settled in the way we may think of it. It is always negotiable. When matters changes, so does the deal… so it has to be a long way, dealing with the chinese.
I only hope that they – the chinese – understand that they cannot wait too long this time, and that they have more to gain than loose if they make a fast decision for once
Saabissimo said on December 13, 2011
Crunch time. Polish your F5 buttons in preparation for Monday afternoon.
TimR said on December 13, 2011
I’ll be on location at the court reporting live!
Audun said on December 13, 2011
Great!
Carlo A said on December 13, 2011
Thanks Tim !
saaburban said on December 13, 2011
Get some good pictures of Rachel, she is the heroine in this epic Saab saga. Saab suporters should park their cars around the court in support of Victor the victorious.
ryanonsrc said on December 13, 2011
plus she is actually quite pretty
SaabKen said on December 14, 2011
Is that her in this pic ?
http://ttela.se/ekonomi/saab/1.1440235-kinesiska-bolagen-betalar-lonerna
http://ttela.se/image_processor/1.1440252.1321967488!/image/628678782.jpg_gen/derivatives/full/628678782.jpg?maxWidth=650
TimR said on December 13, 2011
RikardH will tag along with his mega size camera! =)
katar1na said on December 13, 2011
Oh… my F5 key is gone… what can I do?!
Nice of you guys to call Rachel the Heroine of SAAB saga. Like that… =)
JasonPowell said on December 13, 2011
She is in many ways the “White Knight-ess”
MrTinkertrain said on December 13, 2011
I hope oral hearing does not mean #### ***. All of my twenty fingers crossed together.
ryanonsrc said on December 13, 2011
Now now … this is a family website
Anyhow yes, I’m holding out hope as well.
till72 said on December 13, 2011
C’mon, this is a court, not the White House
JasonPowell said on December 13, 2011
lol
ryanonsrc said on December 13, 2011
hehe, good one.
SAABoy said on December 14, 2011
Haha
Jonno said on December 13, 2011
Yes, this must surely be the final act in the saga of Saab – the tale of a car company that refused to die! It is great news that Rachel Pang will be there to help Victor convince the court that they have a (final) ) solution that will really work. Let us all hope that VM and RP can come up with a credible deal that will satisfy GM, NDO and Chinese NRDC, as well as the Court. The recent experience of the last failed MOUs should be useful.
And surely Youngman would not have stumped up the interim funds for wages, taxes and petty cash etc unless they were confident that the deal on offer will be accepted by all parties?
Apart from stepping aside, perhaps GL will even withdraw the application to take Saab out of voluntary reorganization, as he did last time?
Fingers and toes crossed for the ultimate Xmas present – Saab’s survival.
Griffin and SU up!!
No 9 said on December 13, 2011
So, waitting for another pivotal Monday…
Has this plan been presented to GM?
karl said on December 13, 2011
Rachel you can do it !!!!!
TonymacUK said on December 13, 2011
Rachel must be knocking up some air miles! Dare I ask – how this new deal been run past GM?
TimR said on December 13, 2011
I’ve got more air-miles than her =P
Iiari said on December 13, 2011
Ah, GM’s option… Who knows? From what I’ve read here, this option may not need GM’s approval at all. The problem, however, is GM doesn’t have to sell Swan any Saab 9-4′s or allow 9-3 and 9-5 IP to be used (or do they, if those deals were with Swan and their ownership is intact?). But I’m sure GM gave themselves lots of exit clauses in their original contract, not just ownership issues…
ivo 71 said on December 13, 2011
As far as known, they do, for the reasons you mentioned between brackets.
Ivo
Jeff said on December 14, 2011
From my source who knows GM’s side, they don’t have a problem with this proposal since it limits any risk from the Chinese side using their current IP. As we’ve said for a few days now, it allows only for future tech development from Saab to move east.
However, I asked and still don’t have an answer on whether or not they will perform checks to ensure that Phoenix is truly independent from the Epsilon platform to their satisfaction. That’s the only hurdle I can see in this scenario, that they or a partner (SAIC or FAW) feel that Phoenix is a lightly modified GM-platform that still exposes their IP to competitors hands. In no way would GM’s attitude on that be black and white, it would need to be hashed out between Trollhattan and Detroit. The hope is that this deal provides Swan cover from GM for a time long enough to allow them to ensure that Phoenix is truly independent, and from all indications JC’s redesign (and Saab engineers’ response) has fundamentally altered the chassis and design so much that it really is Saab’s own. There’s still a ways to go and more negotiations even if the court gives the thumbs up, but VM and YM’s work to keep Swan Swan and allow Saab to leverage its greatest strength as an engineering powerhouse is really the best possible outcome.
TonymacUK said on December 13, 2011
Sorry – how should have been has!
orion said on December 13, 2011
There will be no new deal needed with GM, i guess. Anything will be done to make it work within the consisting contracts with GM, about the ownership of Saab. It would be stupid to think a third proposal would succeed.
Allan B said on December 13, 2011
Hail Mary, full of grace . . .
katar1na said on December 13, 2011
Angelo V. said on December 13, 2011
All joking aside, however this ends—-it is refreshing to see the CEO of a company with this much fight in him. Honestly, it’s hard to imagine the stress and fatique Muller has endured, but he refuses to quit. And make no mistake about it—-a lot of corporate executives would have thrown in the towel by now, without a lot of shame. In contrast, Muller has a passion for this company that I really believe is unusual in business. Typically, executives don’t take this type of ownership—-they are not as emotionally invested as he seems to be. This is like a tug of war between David and Goliath. It seems like “the system” is a combination of high ranking government officials and a huge corporation who made Saab a castoff last year. On the other side of the rope, Victor Muller, Rachel Pang (relatively small players) and fans of a small, struggling car company. I have no idea how “we” are going to pull the rope hard enough to bring the flag to our side—-but I’m confident most of us aren’t in any mood to give up yet (save for a few negative people who love stirring the pot to annoy the others here).
ryanonsrc said on December 13, 2011
+900
orion said on December 13, 2011
Nice comment
kochje said on December 14, 2011
Indeed; +1
simonswisssaab said on December 13, 2011
The plan and the money must be there. I think we are near to hearing those magic words – SAAB IS SAVED! Go forth and demolish the doom merchants once and for all!
CSD_ChineseSaabDriver said on December 13, 2011
Proud of Saab & Youngman!
I believe they together will make it!
And on long term they will become strong and stronger!
Cheers
GerritN said on December 13, 2011
Youngman, Saab & Lotus has a nice ring to it!
SaabKen said on December 13, 2011
Acronym = “S.L.Y.” ? [wink]
Jeff said on December 14, 2011
Except for the fact that Lotus itself is very, very messy and has a complicated relationship with Youngman
TurboLover said on December 13, 2011
I’m dreaming of a white NG9-5SC
terry9000k said on December 13, 2011
I have stayed quite recently what with all the ups & downs, & In’s & out’s of the gossip.
GL will be on the opposite side of the fence on Monday, so, Is this the end for him, as Saab’s administrator…??.
It appears it has been VM & R Pang, that have been doing all the deal making, so will he be entitled to his [exorbitant] fees….??.
For all @ Saab, I do hope this is the one, that makes it.
Christmas is coming…!! {maybe early presents here]
USAaber said on December 13, 2011
I’ll be the grinch…
Since GL has -not- contributed to this last phase, I think “we” (as in Saab) should consider him to have not delivered on what he set out to do, i.e. a drastic reduction in his compensation.
Jeff said on December 14, 2011
In fact you’ll hear the case that he stood in the way of productive negotiation, and fed media (cough, DI) with innacurate information to press his own agenda for Saab. Hopefully the specifics we’ve heard about will make it into the light if Swan deems it helpful on Monday.
JasonPowell said on December 14, 2011
Hope so, would be nice to see him exposed like that.
adams said on December 13, 2011
I just hope the new plan — if approved — results in an increased visibility for a guy like Mats Fagerhag.
Niklas G said on December 13, 2011
Something that we all know by now:
http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/386326_10150434197009279_574404278_8743303_1995904291_n.jpg
BLACKAERO said on December 13, 2011
Just wanted to say that my heart lept when I read above what a nice Christmas present the survival of Saab would be. I can’t wait to log in here and see that headline.
aop said on December 14, 2011
BOC Unit, Ordos Fund Said to Enter Saab Acquisition Talks
- according to caixin.cn
Carmania said on December 14, 2011
When I see the first shipment of SAABs to China I know they are up and running again.
Saabissimo said on December 14, 2011
I hope the parties realise exactly what is required to sway the court here. The stakes are higher than ever this time.
Promises of money won’t do this time. In order for the court to grant an extension they will need cold hard cash in the bank, at least enough to cover Nov and Dec salaries (plus maybe a chunk more to provide some comfort to creditors).
And a pretty much finalised deal is probably required too. One that is signed and binding, not just an MoU, with third party approvals in place – or VERY strong signals that all third parties will approve. The track record from previous MoU’s isn’t exactly great.
Remember the administrator has asked to end the reorganisation on the basis that there was no money in the account, obligations had not been met (notably salaries) and there was no firm solution to provide a viable company going forward. Whatever we think of GL, he was right in that assessment at that point in time and was required by law to take the action he did.
In order to be granted an extension they need to prove that his reasons are no longer valid. I suspect that they can only do that by having money in the bank and a legally binding agreement in place that ensures Saab’s future and has passed most or all hurdles.
But I assume their legal team knows what is required. I’m just an outsider making guesses here…