- Sweden edition
- Change edition:
- France |
- Germany |
- Norway |
- Spain |
- Switzerland
Saab administrator: 'the patient is dead'
Published: 22 Jan 12 09:04 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/38644/20120122/
Saab's bankruptcy administrator said at a press conference on Saturday that the company is dead but continues to bleed, while retaining hope that a buyer can be found.
- Former Saab CEO arrested for tax crimes (21 May 13)
- New snag for Swiss deal on Swedish jet fighters (10 Apr 13)
- Gandhi 'helped Swedes' in India fighter jet bid (8 Apr 13)
"But the patient has not stopped bleeding," Hans Bergqvist, one of Saab's bankruptcy administrators, said on Saturday in a first public statement following the long-embattled firm's bankruptcy in December.
Bergqvist continued to underline the importance of maintaining the residual value within the firm in order to increase the chances of staying afloat.
He also said that the administrators had chosen to bide their time to wait for the right moment to approach former owner US firm General Motors to discuss Saab's future.
Although GM beat them to it with a new statement in which they underlined that they were unwilling to release licences for their technology to any new buyers.
"GM got there before us and we now have to take this into consideration before we continue."
Bergqvist underlined that the administrators are conducting an ongoing dialogue with stakeholders.
"Over the next two to three weeks it will emerge which are serious."
He noted that interest has been shown in both the business as a whole and in part.
The inventory of Saab's bankruptcy has not yet been completed and according to Hans Bergqvist, the delay is understandable.
"There is an enormous task," he said, expressing hope that it would be completed by March.
Bergqvist's colleague Anne-Marie Pouteaux revealed that there are several interested parties keen on taking over the Saab museum but no decision has been taken.
"We have received a large number of bids and we shall now evaluate them," she said.
What do you think? Leave your comment below.
Riksbank unveils new board members
Sweden's central bank has appointed two new board members plucked from banking and academia to replace two outgoing members, one of whom was an outspoken critic of the Riksbank's commitment to the government's inflation goal. READ () »
Sweden has 'lower tax burden' than Senegal
While Sweden has a reputation for having one of the most painful tax bills in the world, a new report ranks Sweden 20th when comparing the tax burden on salaries when social security payments and salary brackets are taken into account. READ () »
Ericsson probed over suspected bribes
Swedish telecom equipment maker Ericsson is suspected of having bribed ministers in Romania in connection with being awarded a contract for the country's emergency number and is now under investigation in the United States. READ () »
Warning over 'long-term' Swedish export slump
Sweden's largest business confederation has gone out guns blazing, criticizing politicians for not facing up to the challenges of "a lost year for Swedish exports" in 2012. READ () »
'Lean hospital a sign of Swedish welfare reform'
A Stockholm hospital saved from closure by private health care providers has been hailed by the Economist as one of modern's Sweden public-private success stories. READ () »
H&M mulls production in South America and Africa
Swedish clothing giant H&M is looking into the possibility of sourcing its production to South America, Central America, and even Africa, chief executive Karl-Johan Persson said on Monday. READ () »
Nord Stream plans new gas pipelines
Gas pipeline firm Nord Stream will hold an information meeting on the Baltic island of Gotland on Monday to introduce a proposal to extend its controversial gas pipeline project. READ () »
'Sweden next in line for housing market crash'
Sweden tops a list of countries that risk suffering a housing market crash, Germany's Commerzbank has warned, citing the slackening off of Swedish property prices as a harbinger of a potential downswing. READ () »
Solna voted best place to live in Sweden
Solna, a suburb just north of Stockholm, is the best place to live in Sweden, according to a new ranking published on Friday by Swedish news magazine Fokus. READ () »
Ikea founder rated fifth richest in the world
Ingrad Kamprad, the founder of Swedish furniture giant Ikea, finished fifth on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index published on Friday, with an estimated fortune of $55.6 billion. READ () »
- 16/05 India in no rush to open first Ikea store »
- 16/05 H&M CEO to Bangladesh: raise minimum wages »
- 15/05 Sweden plummets in income equality ranking »
- 15/05 Pensioners to recruit ageing Swedish rockers »
- 15/05 Swedish shop hits back: our Converse are real »
- 15/05 Young Swedes forced to live with mum and dad »
- 14/05 Converse in bid to ban 'fake' shoes in Sweden »
- 13/05 Nordea tracked clients in secret 'black book' »
- 10/05 ABB executive to quit after five-year tenure »
- 10/05 Borg defends critique of strong Swedish krona »
| 22/05 | Accounting ManagerMichael Page | Göteborg |
| 22/05 | Accounting ManagerMichael Page | Göteborg, VTG |
| 22/05 | Architectural Engineer #8409Aker Advantage | Stockholm |
| 22/05 | Controller Tele2 Group ProductTele2 | Kista |
| 22/05 | Head of Product Control - If IndustrialIF skadeförsäkring | Stockholm, Nordic |
| 22/05 | Internship - ResearcherEricsson | Stockholm |
| 22/05 | Manager project management officeAker Advantage | Stavanger |
| 22/05 | Purchasing ControllerHuman Capital | Stockholm |
| 22/05 | Risk & Compliance ManagerHuman Capital | Stockholm |
| 21/05 | .Net Software ArchitectsVolvo Information Technology AB | Göteborg, VTG |
- 22/05 Spain and Germany fight youth employment »
- 21/05 Car boss asks Merkel to rethink CO2 pledge »
- 21/05 SAP to hire hundreds of autistic IT experts »
- 18/05 Economists warn against German euro exit »
- 17/05 Germany cool to France's EU economy plan »
- 17/05 Au pairs rules relax for non-German families »
- 16/05 Germany refuses to slam French economic policy »
- 16/05 Capri-Sun drink wins false advertising award »
- 15/05 Anaemic economy feels winter chill »
- 15/05 ThyssenKrupp bins 3,000 admin jobs »
- 14:08 Your favorite place
- 13:53 Husby Riots and violence against the police...
- 13:47 90% of male population gay?
- 12:53 Favorite mobile phone
- 12:34 Unlocking mobile phones
- 12:29 Living costs in London
- 12:21 Can you recommend an excellent immigration lawyer?
- 11:08 Labor/Swedish Laws regarding Forced Vacations
- 11:03 My scary encounter with Swedbank.
- 07:18 Salary expectations for managing a busy bar?
Create an account with Banc De Binary, the world’s most reputable binary options firm, and start cashing in today! You can start by practicing with our free $50,000 demo account.
www.bbinary.com
Expat counsellor & talk therapist offers counselling for stress, relationship issues, sexuality, culture adjustment & life coaching. Private & confidential. Stockholm or Skype. Contact me today! 08-559 22 636 or
CLICK HERE
Casa Birgitta in Algarve, Portugal. Reduced price in best location. Private estate on white sand beach. All amenities included. Book here today! edward_george1@hotmail.com
Find products and services that are specifically focused on English speakers living in Sweden!
FULL DETAILS
Individuals & Couples - Stockholm Beth Rogerson PhD - Clinical, Marriage & Family Therapist
Click or call 08-5580 1266 now
Your comments about this article:
The comments below have not been moderated in advance and are not produced by The Local unless clearly stated. Readers are responsible for the content of their own comments. Comments that breach our terms and conditions will be removed.
www.saabsdivided.com
Though I will lament the passing of the romantic era of the auto it is going to happen. It's all about market share and only the mega companies will survive.
The Chinese are already taking Volvo in a direction that I feel will destroy the company. They seem to desire to create a luxury European themed brand in China and have chosen Volvo as the vehicle. This is contrary to everything that Volvo has stood for throughout it's history and will, I feel, be it's undoing.
If one looks at automotive history it is full of fascinating and wonderful cars that were not viable for the masses.This is sad and I for one feel fortunate to have lived in an era of romance with the car.
The harsh truth is there was only just enough room in little Sweden for one car company, a tiny outfit like Saab did not fit into a hyper-competitive global car industry where economies of scale and shared development costs are essential. Management, unions, politicians, and even GM, for a while, lived in a state of denial. But the harsh realities of capitalism finally caught up with Saab and did it in. Saab is dead; good! It didn't deserve to live. The Euro is next, that doesn't deserve to live either.
Politicians and dreamers have to up their game. We can't afford to keep paying for this sort of nonsense. It's bankrupting the world.
Other options:
1. Open a Casino at the SAAB factory until all the debts are paid off + a huge cash reserve.
2. Sell SAAB to apple so that they can make an iCar. Apple never had a problem chargin a premium for a beautiful and intuitive product.
3. Get into F-1 racing just long enough to accuse another auto maker of stealing your car plans, and so get a 250 million dollar settlement.
OK I guess the patient really is dead .... not a very serious comment I guess but I am actually sad to see SAAB drive off into the sunset for good.
Accordingly a slightly more serious option #4 to my previous post would be to make high tech police cars, ambulances, or military vehicles (in partnership with Bofors for example) with added instrumentation from the relatively large Swedish defence industry, if there is any room in that market.
SAAB airospace has a niche market that allows it to sell military jets and strike manufacturing sharing arrangements where the Americans are relectant to sell their or assemble their F-16's, F-18's, F-35's etc.., such as to India and possibly Brazil. One wonders if SAAB automobiles could make a high speed and highly equipped military vehicle that would be of interest to places that are not traditional American allies, or even to places that are.
Half of the employees would refuse to return to the production line on moral grounds (refusing to make military vehicles), but this would trim down the workforce to make the new venture slightly easier to start. And half or more of SAAB's auto fans would maybe be very angry or feel betrayed, but anyway this might keep the factory going, unless the re-tooling to make police cars, ambulances, or light weight military vehicles is too expensive, and/or if the market for these is too competitive already.
Or maybe the only market left is for the type of vechilce that SAAB itself make require, namely, a hearse. Hope not, but the vital signs (other than bleeding) indeed look grim.