Sweden Government Official: 3 To 5 Serious Bidders For GM's Saab
01 April 2009 - 6:51PM
Dow Jones News
Saab Automobile AB, which owner General Motors Corp. (GM) is
trying to sell, appears to have attracted between three and five
serious bidders, but its chances of survival remain uncertain, a
senior Swedish government official told Dow Jones Newswires
Wednesday.
He also said the Swedish and German governments have discussed
the possibility of merging Saab and Opel, another troubled GM unit,
but decided such a deal wasn't feasible.
Saab in recent weeks has said that about eight parties have
expressed interest in potentially taking over the Swedish car
maker.
Joran Hagglund, a state secretary in the Swedish Enterprise
Ministry who is the government's main liaison with the auto
industry, said in an interview that he suspects some rival car
makers may signal interest in Saab simply to gain access to its
books and research and development plans.
The picture may clear up in a couple of weeks, and then it may
show that "between three and five" parties are seriously
considering investing in Saab, he said. However, Hagglund doubted
whether this interest would be enough to save Saab once GM cuts its
ties.
"It would be very nice" if Saab could survive, he said. "But the
signs point the other way. The auto industry is in free fall. There
may be no strong buyers."
Potential buyers likely can soon choose between several car
companies in crisis. "The question then is, does Saab's concept fit
into an interested party's ideas? I can't answer that, other than
to say that it looks grim," he said.
Saab in February filed for bankruptcy protection, similar to the
Chapter 11 process in the U.S. Saab on Monday will meet with the
reconstruction team and representatives of GM and Sweden in a
Swedish court to decide whether the reconstruction period, which is
set to expire next month, will be extended.
Hagglund said that since GM had paid almost all of the debt owed
to Saab's suppliers, he expected the court to approve Saab's
request for an extension for up to three months more.
He also said he thought it was unlikely that Saab and Opel, GM's
struggling German unit, would team up. The Swedish and German
governments have discussed that possibility but "have pretty much
concluded that ... it'd be pretty difficult to find an owner who
wants to go in and own both of these loss-making companies."
Hagglund reiterated the Swedish government's stance that it
wasn't interested in owning any auto companies.
Company Web sites: www.gm.com; www.saab.com
-By Ola Kinnander, Dow Jones Newswires; +46-8-5451-3097; ola.kinnander@dowjones.com