Talking to Reuters Victor clearly states that there has been a Chinese offer to take over Saab completely:
The chief executive of Swedish Automobile , owner of troubled car maker Saab, said on Friday he had turned down a full-blown takeover offer from China’s Zhejiang Youngman Lotus Automobile Co and Pangda Automobile Trade Co .
“The token offer was unacceptable because it would trigger every conceivable change of control clause and that would possibly mean the end of Saab,” Swedish Automobile CEO Victor Muller told Reuters in a telephone interview.
Muller would not disclose the value of the offer. As the two Chinese car makers were still interested in Saab, they should stick to the terms of a deal signed in July that would see them take a combined 53.9 percent stake in Amsterdam-listed Swedish Automobile, he said.
Both Youngman and Pangda declined to comment.
This rises the one big question: what or who changed their mind? On the other hand the Wall Street Journal article featured in the last post would indicate that this is mainly driven by Youngman. But what can we be sure of…?
In the same article there are some encouraging quotes from Alex Mascioli, the head of North Street Capital:
This has not discouraged race car aficionado Alex Mascioli, who told Reuters on Friday that his U.S. investment firm, North Street Capital LP, was pressing ahead with a $70 million deal that will allow Saab to keep the lights on.
“I expect the deal to go ahead. I’m willing to do what I can with my resources for Saab,” North Street Managing Partner Mascioli said in a telephone interview.
And further on:
“It’s Victor’s call. He has put a lot of effort into trying to save this company. At the moment there is a deal with the Chinese,” Mascioli said when asked if he was prepared to step in should the deal with Pangda and Youngman fall through.
Saab is an undervalued asset that will survive and from which Mascioli expects to turn a profit, he said, adding that North Street had the capacity to take over Saab should it wish to do.
It surely looks like NSC are about to take an active role in the process of saving Saab. But still this is a new development we don’t know too much about yet. So let’s (again) keep calm and carry on until we get more details on what is happening now. Be sure that we are watching this closely.
Anybody would be better than the Chinese, they have no scruples and would not be good for the long run.
Please, you do not know that. AND lack of scruples can be found in all countries.
A bit short-sighted, isn’t it?
Great update Till. There’s a lot of moving parts here and it’s almost too complicated to speculate on a reliable picture of the final outcome.
To all the experts out there who are trying to guess what the end result of this will all be, ask yourselves if you saw North Street entering the picture even one month ago. This is a highly unpredictable situation, we can just hope that Saab stays as close as possible to its current structure once it’s over.
I dont really understand this: If VM sales part of Saab to NSC instead of (whole Saab or part of) to PangDa/Youngman: What about the car-deal with PangDa then and what about the future on the chines market ??? Matters that in the current situation seems to be of the greatest importance for a future for Saab.
I assume that Pang Da could still be the importer. They seem to be more quiet than Youngman so one would guess they still want to do business, even without a major stake in Saab.
Panda doesn’t want the major stake in Saab, it just want enough state so that it is always the importer of SAAB in china.
My thought exactly.
I don’t think so. All companies from China try to get the technology only. And ofcourse must be very cheap. Next they could produce their own models. That isn’t good solution for Saab. Do they be trustfull partners now?
You are wrong, Panda’s interest is only the solo distribution of SAAB in china. Panda doesn’t have the license to make car in China. It is a trading company, not a automaker. It sells more than 80 brands in China including Audi, Benz, Subaru et al..
Maybe. Would be nice you’re right. Everybody does do it own way.
It is all very well getting small tranches of cash from the likes of NCS but Saab needs a proper injection to cash to pay off all of the suppliers and to restart the company. Plus it is naive to think that Saab can import cars into China profitably – all car brands need to manufacture locally in order to be competitive as imports are highly taxed. If Saab does miraculously survive then it needs to find a manufacturing partner. I still think Saab’s best chance of seeing the year out is to renegotiate with Pang Da and Youngman.
The planned sales for Saab in Chine exceeds the maximum production capacity at Trollhättan so a Chinese plant would be necessary.
But if all the cars for distribution in China have to be imported from Sweden then the import taxation in China would severely curtail the sales potential. If the idea is to set up a large-scale sales effort there then cars need to be built in that country as well. If Pang Da can only sell a limited number of cars at high import prices then the profit outlook for Pang Da would decrease to such a degree that they may not be interested any more.
Ivo
Does it be better partnership. Fingers crossed. Positive thinking 🙂
So everything was going according to plan until GL went to China to ‘have a chat’?
The Swe Govt couldn’t let keep VM own 46% of the company now could they? What were they expecting. Victor to just lay down and die…
So the Chinese distribution deal went to hell as well? VM needs to get in 500 million euro (from the US). Pay everybody and start production or sell Saab before he and VA lose everything they’ve put in SWAN.
Just my two cent.
1+ 🙂
I still think there is a viable solution. Pang Da handle all Chinese distribution, NSC put in the money fora 55% share factory gets up to full capacity 130000 units – simples
I think you just described very broadly plan B (or N by now). This may be where things are headed.
And where did even some kind of realism go to this morning? PangDa and Youngman are OUT according to all sources and NSC has NO track record of investing, they have not even existed for a year yet. And as things are now SAAB will not sell 130.000 cars for many years.
I am convinced that the ONLY way ahead now is to take up on The Chinese offer of investing 5,5 BSEK in SAAB. Muller is expendable. The alternative is going bust, The courts will never accept another period of reconstruction.
I would be surprised if not most of the people reading this site are on Saab’s side.
It would be very interesting to learn what GM thinks of all this. If GM wanted (read: would have accepted) a strong Chinese owner, one would think they would have put more effort into such a track two years ago.
Sadim, I am not sure you have all the facts, how many units would be sold into China? On top of the USA , UK and sweden volume 130k would be achievable in year 2. And why would Pang Da not want to be the only suppliers of Saabs to a very premium led Chinese market…. That is realism! VM can only make proper money if Saab start building and selling cars again!
New interview on Svd.se with Guy Lofalk where he states VM knew everything! I think its Vm that just want his best not SAAB. Other inside wispers say the samething. 🙁
If Guy Lofalk went behind SWANs back two times he can/will prbably also lie and tell that SWAN knew about it.
It looks like there has been some dirty play, and that also swedgow has something to do with it.
IF VM knew why would SWAN want to replace Guy Lofalk?
Because he put up demands on VM
Could also be that they knew about it and had a solution.
If they knew about it and had a solution, then they are very clever.
Noone has ever gotten a straight answer from any of those parties.
Unless off course you want to revive a conspiracy theory of SweGov aiding anyone but VM and VA and wanting to force them out at all costs?
As a person on the outside without all the details it seems impossible to know whats really going on, one thing is clear though, someone is lying. Victor Muller stated “Guy Lofalk went behind his back not only once, but twice”, and Guy Lofalk states in that svd.se article, “Victor has been aware of what i have been doing all the time, even when i went to Peking last week.”
Lets hope PangDa/Youngman has some decency to honor previous agreements!
Don’t expect decency in usiness.
Expect everybody to be interested in making a deal at the minimum price.
The part of the minimum price is where we are now.
Personally I think it was very clever of VM to add NSC to the equation.
It makes it a little easier for PangDa/Youngman to honor the previous agreements
Applied pressure sees to be the order of the day.
Let’s hope NSC has enough money to take over SAAB.
If only to put pressure on Youngman, that will not work.
Youngman can hold money as long as it wish.
But SAAB has no time to wait!
The initiative is not in SWAN’s side.
What if Victor knew that Lofalk was flying to China but not what he was doing there…? Maybe Youngman had also approached Victor to take over 100% before, were told “no way” and tried again when Lofalk showed up alone…?
IMO it is not interesting whether VM knew about it or not.
The question is: Did VM _agree_ to this plan?
Being presented with a token offer to take over the whole company (especially in light of all the clauses imposed by GM and others) does not sound like an option many people would agree with.
We’ve seen news about VM not seeing eye to eye with Lofalk. I am pretty sure Lofalk has indicated this too. VM knowing “about it” would be a very good reason why they did not see eye to eye.
I agree, just like patient is in the surgery room about the die and doctors around him are arguing who is the best one to make a surgery… I don´t like this kind of game too and it is not good for Saab. But I still keep positive, I have always been.
I think you mean: “I find that those dirty games in it self becomes another threath to Saabs main-values: Independent thinking, free spirit, integrity and honest design.”
I completely agree with you!
It was a reply to Troels, Denmark
Audun – you are right – Sorry for my bad English spelling.
Victor Muller spent endless hours and days hammering out the deal with GM, and it has been described as an extremely intricate process with intellectual and financial rights and claims in every direction.
How could the administrator expect to simply sell the whole company to China, just like that?
Is it any wonder VM could not agree to this?