Saab News Update
(4th February 2012)

Reports that the Chinese Zhejiang Youngman Lotus Automobile has officially lodged a 3 billion Swedish Crowns offer (about $450 million) for the beleaguered company has offered a glimmer of hope but the apparent response from the official receivers has been negative. They calculate that a higher value for the bankrupt concern can be achieved by disposing of the various parts of the group separately. If this were the case, the likelihood of Saab surviving in anything like its present form, appears to be minimal.
The fact that General Motors is reportedly continuing to block the transfer of GM technology to Youngman, because of the US company's existing commercial arrangements with another Chinese company, SAIC Motor Corp (Shanghai Automotive), is also hampering a rescue bid. The implication is that Youngman would have to confine its initial plans to producing the old 9.3 model, which does not use GM technology, before the completing work on the prototype Saab PhoeniX model. In the meantime, Youngman would, if it were successful, use spare capacity at the Trollhattan plant to build a Lotus model, as as part of its link with Proton, Lotus' owners.  
There are believed to be four other parties interested in bidding for Saab assets, including  Swedish engineering firm Semcon, Indian utility vehicle manufacture Mahindra & Mahindra as well as Brightwell Holdings, a Turkish investment firm. It remains to be seen whether any of these could turn out to be Saab's White Knight, or vultures picking over the bones, but the prospects do not appear auspicious.
At least there was some good news about the fate of the famous Saab Heritage Museum which seems to have been saved from the auctioneer's hammer by a  3 million euros payment to the receivers, raised by the combined forces of the City of Trollhattan,  Saab AB (Saab's former parent) and a Wallenberg charitable fund.  
The Saab Enthusiast's Club continues to hope for a miracle. We will update this bulletin board when there is more news.

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