Production
Koenigsegg Group Backs Out Of Saab Purchase From GM
November 24th, 2009, 5:22pm by Ryan - 0 Comments
Photo Credit: TTELA
Reuters, CNBC & the local, ABC News, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post all now report that the Koenigsegg group have backed out of the Saab purchase agreement with General Motors.
Here’s a quote from Christian Von Koenigsegg in the Wall Street Journal:
“We regret that after six months of intense and determined work we have come to the painful and difficult conclusion that we are unable to complete the acquisition of SAAB Automobile,” said Christian von Koenigsegg, founder of the Swedish carmaker.”
in addition, here is what he his company has provided in a press release:
Koenigsegg Group end the discussion on the acquisition of Saab Automobile Ab
GOTHENBURG. Koenigsegg Group AB announced today that negotiations for the acquisition of Saab Automobile AB have ceased.
“We regret that after six months of intensive and focused efforts have come to the painful and difficult conclusion that we will be unable to complete the acquisition of Saab Automobile,” said Christian von Koenigsegg.
“The time factor has always been critical to our strategy to reinvigorate the company. Unfortunately, delays in completion of the deal led to risks and uncertainties that prevent us from successfully implementing the business plan for the new Saab Automobile. ”
We are grateful for the support of Saab Automobiles directors, employees and trade unions have given us throughout this process.
and here is GM’s response to this news.
Koenigsegg Group AB Terminates Agreement For Purchase of Saab
“We’re obviously very disappointed with the decision to pull out of the Saab purchase,” said GM President and CEO, Fritz Henderson. “Many have worked tirelessly over the past several months to create a sustainable plan for the future of Saab by selling the brand and its manufacturing interests to Koenigsegg Group AB. Given the sudden change in direction, we will take the next several days to assess the situation and will advise on the next steps next week.”
Swedish Press Conference 12:18 EST/ 6:18 Sweden Click here.
Here’s what the leading news sources around the globe are reporting.
Reuters
STOCKHOLM, Nov 24 (Reuters) – Tiny Swedish luxury car firm Koenigsegg said on Tuesday it had withdrawn from discussions with U.S. auto giant General Motors [GM.UL] over the purchase of its loss-making Saab Automobile unit.
“The time factor has always been critical for our strategy to breathe new life into the company,” Koenigsegg said in a statement.
Koenigsegg backs out of plan to buy Saab from GM
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS (CP) – 1 hour ago
DETROIT — A Swedish specialty automaker has backed out of a deal to buy Saab from General Motors Co., casting serious doubt on the future of the troubled brand.
GM said Tuesday that Koenigsegg Group AB has decided to end the deal, which was announced in June. Financial details of the Saab acquisition were not disclosed by GM.
GM had been trying to unload the Swedish Saab brand as it restructured under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection earlier this year.
GM Chief Executive Fritz Henderson says the Detroit automaker is disappointed in the decision and will take the next several days to figure out what to do.
A person briefed on the deal said Tuesday that Koenigsegg informed GM of the decision on Monday, and Saab’s future is now unclear. GM’s board will have to decide the company’s next move, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the decision has not been made.
The deal, in the works for months, apparently fell through because Koenigsegg had trouble arranging financing. The company in August said it lacked about 3 billion kronor ($417 million) to conclude the deal.
Koenigsegg Group said in a statement Tuesday that it came to the “painful and difficult conclusion” that it wouldn’t be able to complete the deal.
“The time factor has always been critical for our strategy to breathe new air into the company,” it said. “Unfortunately delays in the completion of the deal have resulted in risks and uncertainties that stop us from carrying out the business plan.”
In September, a consortium led by Koenigsegg struck a preliminary agreement with Beijing Automotive Industry Holdings to give the Chinese company a minority stake in Koenigsegg Group.
The consortium includes Norwegian investor Baard Eker and Augie K. Fabela II, co-founder and former chairman of Russian telecom operator VimpelCom.
The deal was subject to a funding commitment for Saab from the European Investment Bank, to be guaranteed by the Swedish government.
CNBC
DETROIT, Nov 24, 2009 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ — General Motors confirmed today that the proposed sale of its Saab subsidiary to Koenigsegg Group AB was terminated at the discretion of the buyer.
“We’re obviously very disappointed with the decision to pull out of the Saab purchase,” said GM President and CEO, Fritz Henderson. “Many have worked tirelessly over the past several months to create a sustainable plan for the future of Saab by selling the brand and its manufacturing interests to Koenigsegg Group AB. Given the sudden change in direction, we will take the next several days to assess the situation and will advise on the next steps next week.” About General Motors: General Motors, one of the world’s largest automakers, traces its roots back to 1908. With its global headquarters in Detroit, GM employs 209,000 people in every major region of the world and does business in some 140 countries. GM and its strategic partners produce cars and trucks in 34 countries, and sell and service these vehicles through the following brands: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, GM Daewoo, Holden, Opel, Vauxhall and Wuling.
ABC News
General Motors Co. says a Swedish specialty car maker has ended plans to buy GM’s Saab brand.
CEO Fritz Henderson says the Detroit automaker is disappointed in the decision by Koenigsegg Group AB and will take the next several days to figure out what to do.
The decision casts serious doubt on the future of Saab, which GM wanted to sell or close this year.
Wall Street Journal
General Motors Co.’s sale of its Saab unit has fallen through after the brand’s expected buyer, Koenigsegg Group AB, pulled the plug on the deal, according to two people familiar with the matter.
GM had planned to sell Saab, a Swedish division, as part of a restructuring plan that called for a significant downsizing. The deal with Koenigsegg, a Scandinavian auto maker that makes exclusive super cars, was expected to close soon. The Swedish government had committed hundreds of millions of dollars in backing for the deal.
GM’s board is slated to meet on Tuesday, and the future of Saab is expected to be discussed during the meeting. At this point, GM appears to favor scrapping the brand altogether, according to one person briefed on the matter. The company’s 13-member board will have final say on the brand, this person said.
The Saab news follows a similar collapse in GM’s attempt to unload its Saturn brand. GM was also looking to sell control in its German Opel division, but the board decided to keep Opel at the last minute.
Washington Post
Koenigsegg backs out of plan to buy Saab from GM
DETROIT — General Motors Co. says a Swedish specialty car maker has ended plans to buy GM’s Saab brand.
CEO Fritz Henderson says the Detroit automaker is disappointed in the decision by Koenigsegg Group AB and will take the next several days to figure out what to do.
The decision casts serious doubt on the future of Saab, which GM wanted to sell or close this year.
he disastrous scenario of Penske and Saturn is playing out once again, this time with Koenigsegg pulling out of the agreement to buy Saab from GM. So far neither GM nor Saab have revealed the reason behind the decision.
GM’s CEO Fritz Henderson released a statement this morning confirming the death of the deal. “We’re obviously very disappointed with the decision to pull out of the Saab purchase,” said Henderson. Where Saab will go next isn’t clear, but there’s now a very real risk the brand could end up on the scrap heap alongside Saturn and Pontiac.
“Given the sudden change in direction, we will take the next several days to assess the situation and will advise on the next steps next week,” said Henderson, but the short missive didn’t detail what the “situation” looks like behind the scenes.
Looking forward to next week’s announcements, potential options include: termination of the brand, sale to an as-yet unnamed third party, or further support from the Swedish government pending a search for another buyer. Unfortunately for fans of the quirky Scandinavian brand, winding down and termination is the most likely in the new scenario.
Saab had been working on bringing out the new 9-5, a sort of return-to-roots visual design, to be followed shortly by Saab’s first non-GM design since it was purchased back in 1989. The 9-3X and 9-4X were expected to fill the gap in the mean time.
As always, we’ll bring you the latest on this situation as it happens.
Swedish Buyer Drops Deal to Buy Saab
General Motors confirmed Tuesday that the deal to sell its loss-making Saab Automobile unit in Sweden was off.
In a statement, G.M. said that the deal had been terminated by the buyer, the Koenigsegg Group, the luxury Swedish carmaker.
“We’re obviously very disappointed with the decision to pull out of the Saab purchase,†the chief executive of G.M. Fritz Henderson, said.
“Given the sudden change in direction,†Mr. Henderson said, “we will take the next several days to assess the situation and will advise on the next steps next week.â€
Koenigsegg, backed by American and Norwegian investors, had struck a deal in June to buy the unprofitable Saab from G.M., but questions about financing had dogged the deal. And in September, Koenigsegg sold a stake to the state-owned Beijing Automotive Industry Holding.
Koenigsegg Ends Talks to Buy Saab; GM May Shut Swedish Unit
By Niklas Magnusson, Adam Ewing and Jeff Green
Nov. 24 (Bloomberg) — Koenigsegg Group AB canceled its planned acquisition of General Motors Co.’s Saab Automobile AB, and GM is considering shutting the brand, a person familiar with the matter said.
GM’s board plans to review plans for the Swedish unit at a meeting on Dec. 1, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the talks aren’t public. Directors could opt to keep Saab, as they did when deciding earlier this month to cancel a sale of the Opel brand in Germany, the person said.
GM has a contingency plan similar to a process being used to wind down the Saturn brand after the sale to Penske Automotive Group Inc. fell apart in September, the person said.
“Time always played a critical factor in our strategy for reviving the company,†Christian von Koenigsegg, a member of the group that agreed to buy Saab, said in a statement today. “Unfortunately, delays in closing this acquisition have resulted in risks and uncertainties that prevent us from successfully implementing the new Saab business plan.â€
Saab had expected that the transaction would be closed at the end of this month. The deal was postponed after the European Investment Bank delayed a decision on granting Saab a 400 million-euro ($600 million) loan, which it eventually approved Oct. 21.
“We believed in the plan, we were convinced that it would work,†Koenigsegg Chairman Augie Fabela said in a telephone interview today. “We came to the decision after deliberations over the past few days that time just ran out for us to make the deal happen. It’s up to GM nowâ€
To contact the reporters on this story: Niklas Magnusson in Stockholm at nmagnusson1@bloomberg.net; Jeff Green in Southfield, Michigan, at Jgreen16@bloomberg.net
Saab sale called off by would-be buyer
The two sides made a preliminary deal in June
The sale of General Motors’ (GM’s) Swedish unit Saab has been called off after the would-be buyer pulled out of the deal.
Swedish sportscar maker Koenigsegg said it had “come to the painful and difficult conclusion” that it could no longer carry out the acquisition.
GM said it was “very disappointed” by the decision.
The two sides had announced a preliminary agreement over the sale of loss-making Saab in June.
Analysts said the news raises questions over Saab’s long-term viability.
“Given the sudden change in direction, we will take the next several days to assess the situation and will advise on the next steps next week,” said GM president and chief executive Fritz Henderson.
The news comes three weeks after GM announced that it was calling off plans to sell its other European business, Opel, along with its UK brand Vauxhall.
GM had agreed to sell Opel and Vauxhall to Canadian car parts firm Magna, but changed its mind.
Saab sale falls apart for GM as buyer backs out
By TIM HIGGINS
General Motors Co.’s efforts to sell its Saab subsidiary have run afoul, with the buyer terminating the deal, the automaker announced today.
GM confirmed that the proposed sale of its Saab subsidiary to Koenigsegg Group AB has been terminated “at the discretion of the buyer.â€
In June, the two companies had announced a tentative sales agreement that was expected to be closed by the end of the third quarter. Recently, GM officials had said the deal would be concluded by the end of the year.
“We’re obviously very disappointed with the decision to pull out of the Saab purchase,” GM President and CEO Fritz Henderson said in a statement. “Many have worked tirelessly over the past several months to create a sustainable plan for the future of Saab by selling the brand and its manufacturing interests to Koenigsegg Group AB. Given the sudden change in direction, we will take the next several days to assess the situation and will advise on the next steps next week.”
GM had also planned to sell a majority stake in its European Opel division but terminated those plans earlier this month, announcing it would fix the division itself.
GM sale of Saab collapses
Marks second time in two months that a GM plan to sell off one of the brands it is abandoning has fallen apart
GM ‘Disappointed’ As Saab Sale Goes South
“We’re obviously very disappointed with the decision to pull out of the Saab purchase,” GM President and CEO Fritz Henderson said in a statement.
“Many have worked tirelessly over the past several months to create a sustainable plan for the future of Saab by selling the brand and its manufacturing interests to Koenigsegg Group AB.
“Given the sudden change in direction, we will take the next several days to assess the situation and will advise on the next steps next week.”
GM said the proposed sale of its Swedish mark was “terminated at the discretion of the buyer”.
Christian von Koenigsegg
“We regret that after six months of intense and goal-oriented work we have come to the painful and difficult conclusion that we are not going to be able to carry out the acquisition of Saab Automobile,” company boss, Christian von Koenigsegg said in a statement.
Koenigsegg announced in September that it had teamed up with Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co Ltd (BAIC) to buy Saab from GM.
But it still needed a a £360m loan from the European Investment Bank and wanted the Swedish government to act as a guarantor.
Koenigsegg Group, founded in 1994, has just 45 employees and produces 18 high-end sports cars a year.
The Swedish government has still not decided whether to act as guarantor.
Deal to sell niche Swedish brand to Koenigsegg Group, a maker of high-end sports cars, is called off.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — The deal to sell Saab to Swedish firm Koenigsegg Group AB has collapsed, General Motors announced Tuesday.
“We’re obviously very disappointed with the decision to pull out of the Saab purchase,” said GM CEO Fritz Henderson in a statement. “Given the sudden change in direction, we will take the next several days to assess the situation and will advise on the next steps next week.”
Officials with Koenigsegg, a small manufacturer of top end sports cars, were not immediately available for comment. The company had been talking to the Swedish National Debt Office about the government guarantee for the loan it needed to buy the unit. The price of the deal had not been disclosed by either party.
Saab, based in Trollhättan, Sweden, was one of the brands GM announced it would shed as part of its bankruptcy reorganization earlier this year. It is in the process of shutting down its Pontiac brand and selling the Hummer unit to a Chinese manufacturer. It had also sought to sell its Saturn brand to auto dealer Penske Automotive Group (PAG, Fortune 500), but when that deal fell through it moved to start shutting down Saturn.
Saab buyer backs out leaving 3,000 jobs hanging
Koenigsegg, Saab’s tiny Swedish buyer, says it ‘regrets’ being unable to follow through on its planned acquisition of GM’s Saab
GM’s planned sale of Saab to Koenigsegg, the Swedish sports car-maker, has collapsed casting doubt over more than 3,000 UK jobs.
The tiny Swedish buyer, which was backed by China’s Beijing Automotive Industry Holdings (BAIC), said today that it ‘regretted’ that it could not follow through on its plans.
In a statement it said: “After six months of intense and goal-oriented work we have come to the painful and difficult conclusion that we are not going to be able to carry out the acquisition of Saab.”
GM Europe, Saab’s bankrupt US parent, announced in mid-June that it had struck a deal to sell Saab to Koenigsegg and that the sale would close by
The sale was to have secured thousands of UK jobs in dealerships and at Saab’s British headquarters.
Saab, one of Sweden’s best-known brands, employs 3,400 people in the country. Around 3,000 people are employed at Saab’s 87 UK dealerships and 100 at its UK headquarters.
In September, Koenigsegg, which employs only 43 people near Malmo, Sweden, revealed that China’s Beijing Automotive Industry Holdings (BAIC) had agreed to back its bid. BAIC was to become a minority shareholder in Koenigsegg.
However, doubts had emerged about Koenigsegg’s resources. Despite its tie-up with BAIC it still needed a €400 million loan from the European Investment Bank and wanted the Swedish government to act as guarantor – something it had not yet committed to.
Christian von Koenigsegg, head of the company, said: “The time factor has from the beginning been critical for our strategy to breathe new life into the company.
“Unfortunately, delays in completing the deal have led to risks and uncertainties that prevent us from successfully carrying out our business plan.”
Fritz Henderson, chief executive of GM, said he was “disappointed” by Koenigseggs’ decision.
In a statement, he said: “GM confirmed today that the proposed sale of its Saab subsidiary was terminated at the discretion of the buyer.
“We are obviously very disappointed with the decision to pull out of the purchase. Many have worked tirelessly over the past several months to create a sustainable plan for the future of Saab.”
It said it would now take “several days to assess the situation.”
Saab, which is based in Trollhattan, southern Sweden, has been making cars since 1949 and has been loss-making since 2001. Last year its sales fell 25 per cent to 93,295 vehicles – 1.1 per cent of GM’s total output.
Swedish unions feared that if Saab collapsed, the jobs toll would hit 15,000 from losses in the supply chain and related activities.
Saab said only in September that BAIC’s backing for the deal meant it was now “completely convinced that we will be able to complete the deal by the end of October.”
BREAKING: Koenigsegg backs out of Saab purchase, brand future up in the air
After riding in on a white horse, Koenigsegg Group AB has pulled out of negotiations to buy Saab from General Motors, leaving the Swedish automaker’s future very much in doubt. In a brief statement issued by GM (available after the jump), president and CEO Fritz Henderson says that the company is “very disappointed with the decision to pull out of the Saab purchase.”
It is unclear what will happen to the brand now, but if Saab fans can hold on to any hope, GM says it will “take the next several days to assess the situation and will advise on the next steps next week.” It is worth noting that this is different from the brief announcement that GM issued when Roger Penske’s group pulled out from buying Saturn – GM immediately announced that they would begin “winding down” the brand. There was at least one other serious bidder interested in purchasing Saab previous to Koenigsegg becoming the preferred purchaser, but it isn’t immediately clear if they are still interested, or if their financial backing checked out to begin with.
We suspect that even if Saab is unable to survive as a brand, someone will step in and purchase the assets to the already tooled-up forthcoming 9-5 sedan – perhaps the Chinese – and potentially the newish 9-3/9-3X as well.
Swedish carmaker backs out of Saab deal
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Swedish carmaker Koenigsegg on Tuesday backed out of its deal to buy the Saab brand from General Motors, leaving the Detroit giant with another European name plate it had initially planned on selling.
“We’re obviously very disappointed with the decision to pull out of the Saab purchase,” GM CEO Fritz Henderson said. “Given the sudden change in direction, we will take the next several days to assess the situation and will advise on the next steps next week.”
GM and Koenigsegg reached a binding agreement on the cash-bleeding Saab brand back in August, two months after the two automakers signed a letter of intent.
While the purchase price was effectively zero, the deal still required the Swedish government to guarantee loans from the European Investment Bank.
“I never saw any sense in why Koenigsegg would want to be involved, and I was convinced that it was the most blatant attempt by the Swedish government to preserve Swedish jobs,” Stephen Pope, Cantor Fitzgerald’s chief global market strategist, said.
Koenigsegg is a niche sports carmaker that employs only 45 full-time workers and produces just a few cars a year.
Saab was originally founded in 1937 to make airplanes for the Swedish Air Force before turning into a carmaker that reached a sales peak of 133,000 vehicles in 2006.
GM bought half the company in 1990 and the rest in 2000.
As part of its plans to rebuild itself around its core Buick, Cadillac, Chevy and GMC brands, GM has been working to sell or shut down Pontiac, Saturn, Hummer and Saab.
Earlier this month, GM decided to keep its German subsidiary Opel and U.K.-based Vauxhall after first putting them up for sale as well.
Write a comment