Saab deal falls through

On Friday the 18th of December 2009, General Motors issued a statement declaring that the sale of Saab Automobile AB would not go through. In other words, Saab would be closed.

However there is still a skerrick of hope that Saab and the much anticipated all-new 9-5 model will be saved, with Spyker's top brass submitting a final last ditch proposal to secure the deal.

GM refused Spyker's initial offer late last week to buy Saab, with GM Europe's President, Nick Reilly, stating: "Despite the best efforts of all involved, it has become very clear that the due diligence required to complete this complex transaction could not be executed in a reasonable time.

"In order to maintain operations, Saab needed a quick resolution. We regret that we were not able to complete this transaction with Spyker Cars," added Reilly.
But Spyker CEO Victor R. Muller put a final offer on the table, confident that GM will like what it sees.

"We have made every effort to resolve the issues that were preventing the conclusion of this matter and we have asked GM and all other involved parties to seriously consider this offer," stated Muller on the weekend.

It seems that after being rejected by General Motors, Spyker's resolve has only increased, pushing harder and making more compromises to seal the deal before the new decade rolls around.

"We are very confident that our renewed offer will remove the impasse that was standing in the way of an agreement on Friday, and this would still allow us to conclude the deal prior to the expiry of the deadline originally set by GM of December 31st.

"Despite our collective eleventh hour set-back, we are returning to the table with a renewed offer, that addresses every known issue brought to light during the initial negotiations and that has the full backing of the Saab Management. The new offer eliminates the need for an EIB loan approval prior to year end, for example, which will allow the deal to be concluded within GM's deadline.

"Our efforts are based on our passion for saving an iconic brand that we would be honoured to shepherd, and the jobs and livelihoods of thousands of loyal Saab employees, suppliers and dealers around the world. Some 1,500,000 Saabs are on the road today and their proud owners would no doubt welcome the survival of this phenomenal brand," added Muller.

Spyker's offer will remain until 5.00pm (European EST) on Monday December 21, 2009. If the sale does not go through, Saab will be slowly wound down and its factories shut.

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