Early in August Spyker Cars NV, the former owner of Saab Automobile, filed a lawsuit claiming GM deliberately drove Saab into bankruptcy. Last night GM filed its respons to the court dismissing Spykers claim.
"The nub of plaintiffs' complaint is that GM declined to approve the transaction plaintiffs proposed to enter into with Youngman. But the relevant contracts did not permit Saab to consummate the proposed transaction without GM's approval," GM says in its respons.
In its lawsuit Spyker claims that GM had no right to say that it would not support the deal between Saab and the Chinese suitors as the technology which was to be shared between the partners where developed by Saab and was not GM's technology.
"Putting aside whether this argument is factually wrong, it misses the point. GM had the right to terminate its technology license and supply agreements with Saab if there was a change in control of Saab with GM's prior consent," GM says in its respons.
"This right was clear and absolute, and did not depend on how GM's technology purportedly was being handled," GM said.
A blog fueled by enthusiasm about Saab, the greatest car company between the North and the South Pole. And their cars, which probably is the only cars that would start on a cold and crispy South Pole morning.
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Saab Powertrain chief to NEVS
Here is a piece of news that gives me some faith. Former head of Saab Automobile Powertrain AB, Kjell AC Bergström has joined the managment at NEVS. Bergström is the man who where supposed to retire a few years ago, but decided to keep working for Saab and see the Phoenix arcitecture develop into cars. Now he has joined NEVS as head technical development. So maybe there is a future for Saab after all?
Monday, September 3, 2012
NEVS finalize aquisition of Saab and right to use SAAB brand name
National ELectric Vehicle Sweden has today announced that the deal to buy the assets of Saab Automobile has been finalized. The company has also come to an agreement with the defense and security company Saab AB which gives NEVS the right to use the Saab brand name on future vehicles.
The press release:
The press release:
National Electric Vehicle Sweden AB has finalized acquisition of the Saab Automobile bankruptcy estates
Sep 03, 2012 10:00 CEST
National Electric Vehicle Sweden AB (NEVS) today announced that the company has finalized its acquisition of the main assets of Saab Automobile AB, Saab Automobile Powertrain AB and Saab Automobile Tools AB, effective August 31, 2012. The prerequisites for implementing the NEVS business plan are now in place. The acquisition includes IP rights for the Saab 9-3, IP rights for the Phoenix platform, tools, the manufacturing plant and test and laboratory facilities. The acquisition also comprises all outstanding shares in the property company which owned the Saab facilities in Trollhättan, Sweden. The transaction was conducted as a cash purchase. The purchase amount will not be disclosed.
”The Receivers are very pleased that the transaction involving NEVS and the bankruptcy estates, which all involved parties have intensely worked for over an extended period, is now complete,” said Anne-Marie Pouteaux, Partner, Wistrand, Hans L. Bergqvist, Partner, Delphi, Receivers in bankruptcy for the Saab Automobile estate and Kent Hägglund, DLA Nordic, Co-receiver in bankruptcy for the Saab trademark and trade name rights.
“The efforts to implement our business plan can now be multiplied, focused on the development of a world-class electric vehicle in Trollhättan,” said Karl-Erling Trogen, Chairman, National Electric Vehicle Sweden AB. ”In approximately 18 months, we plan to introduce our first electric vehicle based on Saab 9-3 technologies and a new technology electric powertrain. I would like to express our gratitude and thanks to the receivers for their cooperation during this very complex process.”
“Engineering and development of our first electric vehicle has been underway for an extended period in China and Japan, and now, with the manufacturing facilities in our possession, we are able to continue development work on site at Trollhättan,” said Kai Johan Jiang, CEO, National Electric Vehicle Sweden AB.
NEVS is wholly owned by National Modern Energy Holdings Ltd., whose founder and principal owner is Kai Johan Jiang.
NEVS has signed a licensing agreement with Saab AB regarding the rights to use the Saab brand name for its future vehicles. The vehicle manufacturing company is named National Electric Vehicle Sweden AB, “NEVS”. The vehicles and related products and services will be named SAAB. The present logotype will not be used.
Recruitment to the management team and key positions at NEVS is in progress. As of today, about 75 people have received employment offers.
”The Receivers are very pleased that the transaction involving NEVS and the bankruptcy estates, which all involved parties have intensely worked for over an extended period, is now complete,” said Anne-Marie Pouteaux, Partner, Wistrand, Hans L. Bergqvist, Partner, Delphi, Receivers in bankruptcy for the Saab Automobile estate and Kent Hägglund, DLA Nordic, Co-receiver in bankruptcy for the Saab trademark and trade name rights.
“The efforts to implement our business plan can now be multiplied, focused on the development of a world-class electric vehicle in Trollhättan,” said Karl-Erling Trogen, Chairman, National Electric Vehicle Sweden AB. ”In approximately 18 months, we plan to introduce our first electric vehicle based on Saab 9-3 technologies and a new technology electric powertrain. I would like to express our gratitude and thanks to the receivers for their cooperation during this very complex process.”
“Engineering and development of our first electric vehicle has been underway for an extended period in China and Japan, and now, with the manufacturing facilities in our possession, we are able to continue development work on site at Trollhättan,” said Kai Johan Jiang, CEO, National Electric Vehicle Sweden AB.
NEVS is wholly owned by National Modern Energy Holdings Ltd., whose founder and principal owner is Kai Johan Jiang.
NEVS has signed a licensing agreement with Saab AB regarding the rights to use the Saab brand name for its future vehicles. The vehicle manufacturing company is named National Electric Vehicle Sweden AB, “NEVS”. The vehicles and related products and services will be named SAAB. The present logotype will not be used.
Recruitment to the management team and key positions at NEVS is in progress. As of today, about 75 people have received employment offers.
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Bankruptcy administrators demand NEVS pays for Saab by Friday or no deal
Yesterday Swedish Radio P4 Väst reported that the company which has agreed to buy the assets of Saab Automobile, Netional Electric Vehicle Sweden, so far has only made a down payment of SEK 150 million of the agreed purchase price og approx. SEK 1.8 billion. According to P4 Väst, NEVS has had trouble getting the funding for the remaining amount.
Today Dagens Industri reports that the bankruptcy administrators have given NEVS an ultimatum: Pay by Friday of the deal is off.
NEVS does however say to P4 Väst that the company has access to the needed funds.
"We have the needed funds to go through with the business plan and close the deal," said NEVS spokesman Matthias Bergman to P4 Väst.
"It is a complex deal and we are working hard to close it as soon as possible. The funding is not one of the unresolved issues," he continued.
The question remains: Is NEVS a credible buyer of Saab?
Today Dagens Industri reports that the bankruptcy administrators have given NEVS an ultimatum: Pay by Friday of the deal is off.
NEVS does however say to P4 Väst that the company has access to the needed funds.
"We have the needed funds to go through with the business plan and close the deal," said NEVS spokesman Matthias Bergman to P4 Väst.
"It is a complex deal and we are working hard to close it as soon as possible. The funding is not one of the unresolved issues," he continued.
The question remains: Is NEVS a credible buyer of Saab?
Monday, August 27, 2012
Spyker partners up with Youngman to make luxury Saab based vehicles
My first thought was that this had to be an old press release from 2011 that somehow had found its way back into the headline of Automotive News Europe, but believe it or not, Spyker and Youngman have actually agreed to form yet another partnership. This time to cooperate in using the license to the Saab Pheonix architecture, which Youngman bought in September 2011, to develop and produce a number of luxury vehicles.
According to TTELA, CEO of Spyker and former CEO of Saab Automobile, Victor Muller, says that the cars will draw inspiration from the Saab design and the man in charge of the design will be no other than Jason Castriota, former design chief of Saab.
"There will definitly be a lot of Saab in the cars, but they will be more premium. We will continue where we left off," Victor Muller says.
Youngman will invest several million Euros and the first car can be ready to launch at the end of 2015.
Everybody who have followed the Saab saga the past years will see the similarities with several other framework deals that have been signed between Spyker and other companies, deals that somehow all ended up with nothing. Do we believe in this last deal?
The Spyker press release:
According to TTELA, CEO of Spyker and former CEO of Saab Automobile, Victor Muller, says that the cars will draw inspiration from the Saab design and the man in charge of the design will be no other than Jason Castriota, former design chief of Saab.
"There will definitly be a lot of Saab in the cars, but they will be more premium. We will continue where we left off," Victor Muller says.
Youngman will invest several million Euros and the first car can be ready to launch at the end of 2015.
Everybody who have followed the Saab saga the past years will see the similarities with several other framework deals that have been signed between Spyker and other companies, deals that somehow all ended up with nothing. Do we believe in this last deal?
The Spyker press release:
Press release
SPYKER AND YOUNGMAN SIGN FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT FOR 29.9 PERCENT STAKE, JOINT VENTURE FOR SPYKER D8 SSUV AND JOINT VENTURE FOR NEW PRODUCT RANGE BASED ON PHOENIX PLATFORM
Zeewolde, the Netherlands, 27 August 2012 -- Spyker N.V. ("Spyker") announces that it signed a Framework Agreement with the Chinese car manufacturer Zhejiang Youngman Passenger Car Group Co, Ltd ("Youngman") today.
Today's Framework Agreement entails the following :
* Subject to satisfactory completion by Youngman of a due diligence on Spyker and the satisfaction of relevant conditions to be set forth in the definitive transaction documentation, Youngman will invest Euro 10,000,000 in Spyker of which approximately Euro 6,700,000 as subscription for such number of Class A shares in Spyker as will constitute 29.9% of the issued and outstanding share capital of Spyker on a fully diluted basis for a price of Euro 0.05 per share, and the remaining approximately Euro 3,300,000 shall be provided to Spyker in the form of a shareholder loan. Youngman undertakes to not exceed the 29.9 percent threshold and therefore has no ambition to make a mandatory offer on all outstanding shares in Spyker.
* Youngman shall pay the first tranche of the share subscription in an amount of Euro 2,300,000 to Spyker within 7 days as of today.
* Youngman shall pay the remaining Euro 7,700,000 no later than 45 days after the execution of the definitive transaction documentation.
* Youngman and Spyker will jointly invest in a Joint Venture to be called Spyker P2P B.V. ("Spyker P2P") in which Youngman will make a cash contribution in the amount of Euro 25,000,000 and will hold 75% of the shares whilst Spyker will make its contribution by transferring the technology it developed for the Spyker D8 Peking-to-Paris, a $ 250,000 four door Super Sports Utility Vehicle ("SSUV") ,as well as the Spyker trademarks and will hold 25% of Spyker P2P's shares. Youngman's contribution shall be paid in installments in accordance with the development and manufacturing plan of the SSUV with the objective of launching that car by the end of 2014. Additional models on the SSUV technology are being contemplated.
* Youngman and Spyker will jointly incorporate a second Joint Venture to be called Spyker Phoenix B.V.("Spyker Phoenix") in which Youngman will contribute the rights to the Phoenix platform as developed by Saab Automobile AB in 2010/2011 to which Youngman acquired a license in 2011 as well as provide all required funding. Youngman will hold 80% of Spyker Phoenix' shares whilst Spyker will hold 20% of Spyker Phoenix' shares which shareholding will be exempt from dilution.
Spyker Phoenix shall develop and manufacture a new full range of premium car models based on the Phoenix platform which models will be positioned higher than the comparable Saab models were. Spyker Phoenix products may be manufactured in Europe and China as the case may be.
Youngman and Spyker agree to provide all the (manufacturing) technologies owned by each of them to Spyker Phoenix for its use free of charge.
Victor R. Muller, Spyker's CEO said:" Since the regretful demise of Saab Automobile AB in December 2011,we have been investigating the possibilities to continue our intended cooperation with Youngman to the benefit of both companies thereby utilizing the assets, both tangible as well as intangible, each of us has at its disposal. With this Framework Agreement, Youngman and Spyker lay the foundation for an intense cooperation whereby we will pursue the objectives we each had in mind when we were forging our cooperation as partners in Saab Automobile AB. We clearly share the vision on how to shape Spyker's future as partners going forward ."
Pang Qingnian, Youngman's CEO said:" We have felt all along that a cooperation with Spyker had to be pursued, even after we both unjustifiedly lost the opportunity to restructure Saab Automobile AB as a going concern and jointly develop its business, however, we secured Saab Automobile's technology. With this Agreement, many of our original intentions with the "Saab" brand will still take shape and we are excited to help Spyker further develop its vehicle model range with the SSUV and vehicles based on Saab Automobile's Phoenix platform technology both in China as well as in the rest of the world."
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Scania can not deny NEVS the use of Gripen
According to TTELA, which cites Svenska Dagbladet, truck developer and manufacturer Scania AB can not deny Saab Automobile the use of the Gripen (Griffin) emblem.
Svenska Dagbladet has spoken to Henrik Klackenberg from Sweden's National Archives. According Klackenberg, the Gripen emblem does not belong to Scania but has been in the possession of Malmö Municipality the last 500 years. As early as 1437, Malmö had a red griffin as a city emblem.
In other words, it is not up to Scania to decide whether Saab Automobile can use the Gripen, it is up to Malmö Municipality or possibly the county of Skåne.
"As long as it does not imply patent or trademark infringement, we have no objections. They can use it freely", said Helene Persson at Malmö Municipality.
Svenska Dagbladet has spoken to Henrik Klackenberg from Sweden's National Archives. According Klackenberg, the Gripen emblem does not belong to Scania but has been in the possession of Malmö Municipality the last 500 years. As early as 1437, Malmö had a red griffin as a city emblem.
In other words, it is not up to Scania to decide whether Saab Automobile can use the Gripen, it is up to Malmö Municipality or possibly the county of Skåne.
"As long as it does not imply patent or trademark infringement, we have no objections. They can use it freely", said Helene Persson at Malmö Municipality.
Thursday, August 16, 2012
No more Gripen for Saab
As reported earlier, National Electric Vehcile Sweden, which is the buyer of Saab Automobile, has been negotiating with the security and defence company Saab AB and the truck manufacturer Scania AB in order to be allowed to use the SAAB brand name and the Gripen (Griffin) logo on future Saab cars. But now Scania has decided that NEVS and Saab Automobile will not be allowed to use the Gripen logo in the future.
"It is a very attractive emblem in China and we do not want anything disturbing our business there," said Hans-Åke Danielsson at Scania to TTELA.
Negotiations concerning the brand name SAAB is still ongoing with Saab AB and no decision has been reached yet.
"We look at it [the brand name] as an important asset with strong ties to us, but there is really no news in the matter. Talks are still ongoing," said Sebastian Carlsson at Saab AB.
"It is a very attractive emblem in China and we do not want anything disturbing our business there," said Hans-Åke Danielsson at Scania to TTELA.
Negotiations concerning the brand name SAAB is still ongoing with Saab AB and no decision has been reached yet.
"We look at it [the brand name] as an important asset with strong ties to us, but there is really no news in the matter. Talks are still ongoing," said Sebastian Carlsson at Saab AB.
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