Party's Over

[Feffman]

STOCKHOLM
Wed Aug 17, 2011 12:16pm EDT


STOCKHOLM Aug 17 (Reuters) - Sweden's debt enforcement agency is preparing to seize assets of troubled car maker Saab in an attempt to recover at least 4 million Swedish crowns ($625,000)owed to parts suppliers.

"We have contacted Saab's banks," Hans Ryberg, an official at the Swedish Enforcement Authority said on Wednesday.

The agency can now seize assets, including any cash in Saab's bank accounts.

Car production at the cash-strapped company, rescued in early 2010 by Netherlands-based Swedish Automobile, ground to a standstill in April because suppliers who had not been paid refused to deliver components.

Since then, Saab has been scrambling to find new sources of financing. The company has agreed around 61 million euros ($86 million) in short-term funding, which it used to pay wages and some debts to suppliers.

Saab's next big test comes at the end of the month when it is due to pay wages to its roughly 3,600 employees, a bill that could run to millions of dollars.

A number of suppliers have turned to the authorities to get their money with some 370,000 Swedish crowns ($58,000) immediately outstanding after final demands from Sweden's debt collection agency.

The amount due for immediate payment will rise to 4 million crowns on Thursday, Ryberg said, and is expected to rise further.

A Saab spokeswoman declined to comment on the actions of the debt collectors office but said executives were working hard to raise additional money for the company.

Suppliers and workers have been losing patience with Saab over unpaid debts. Saab delayed paying workers' salaries two months in a row, leading unions to threaten to demand the company be declared bankrupt. Saab later coughed up.

In July, supplier SwePart Verktyg AB applied to the courts for Saab Automobile Tools AB, a daughter company to Saab Automobile, to be put into bankruptcy, only to withdraw its request when it was paid.

According to figures in Saab's annual report, the company had to pay out around 157 million crowns ($24 million) in staff costs each month last year. ($1=6.395 Swedish Kronas)

(Reporting by Johan Ahlander; Editing by Erica Billingham)

[tuner4life]

Damn.

[Palmer]

Hmm.

[jk88]

I think Saab has the money to pay these suppliers ($625k) but they made an agreement with the others that they would all be paid at the same time.

If push comes to shove, and it looks like it is, I don't think something as (relatively) small as this amount would pull the plug on our ailing patient. I think VM would start selling his own organs to provide bridge funding until The Deal is made.

[sha-d]

If only people knew how great saabs drive. Its sad to see how much people actually know about them. I would say, and you can disagree with me if youd like, but i would take a saab over 77% of the cars being driven on the roads today. They say they compete with x vehicles in thier class, and do great, but sell very little. When was the last time you seen a SAAB advertised in the paper or magazine like its rivals. Exactly. SAAB should pull some more strings in marketing and advertisement, and quit beating around the bush.

[spgeebee88]

yikess

[jk88]

If/when they do get restarted, I imagine Europe/China/Russia will be their main targets. It'll be years before they have any semblance of a brand image and dealer network in the US.

[ibiggers]

Originally Posted by sha-d

If only people knew how great saabs drive. Its sad to see how much people actually know about them. I would say, and you can disagree with me if youd like, but i would take a saab over 77% of the cars being driven on the roads today. They say they compete with x vehicles in thier class, and do great, but sell very little. When was the last time you seen a SAAB advertised in the paper or magazine like its rivals. Exactly. SAAB should pull some more strings in marketing and advertisement, and quit beating around the bush.

UMMMM... SAAB updates their facebook page all day long, that is plenty of marketing



Right guys, that's marketing, right?

[Feffman]

There is some truth to race on Sunday, sell on Monday. I'd like to see Saab in the World Rally Championship to revive the image they built the company on. They've an awesome four-wheel-drive system, put it to good use in WRC or maybe even some touring car races.

Now to find a Viggen!

Feff

[Hirsch]

It ain't over til the fat lady sings.

The Rabbit’s Poking Out of the Hat Again…

The Rabbit’s Poking Out of the Hat Again…

by Jeff on August 19, 2011

We like to give everyone the latest news here. Sometimes (a lot of times) we’ll hear whispers that we can’t possibly report on, because they’re likely to harm Saab’s deal making in some way or form. But tonight, we have a very weird and unorthodox story that’s breaking

his story comes to us not from a Swedish paper, but from one that covers Asia-Pacific deals. The story that it covers is actually about Hawaiian venture capital deals from a particularly young private equity firm based in New York, that just opened new offices in Colorado, California, and Sweden. Endeavor Advisory Group confirmed to PBN (Pacific Business News) that they’re working on a deal with Saab. David Khalizad, a name we most likely will be getting very familiar with in the next day or so, is CEO of Endeavor, and admitted to PBN, “I must say, you guys look like geniuses,” when they figured out the deal after publishing their original article, confirming that it was true that they’re in talks with Saab. The oddest part is that this is part of a much larger project aimed at Environmental Pojects. Since PBN figured it out from Khalizad, Endeavor all but confirmed it themselves, by posting the PBN article on their website:

So that’s that folks. It’s not a quick fix (60 days), it’s not detailed yet, but it’s certainly being handled by the best in the business. Americans are sitting on trillions in cash, waiting for solid investments on the cheap to take advantage of. Saab seems ripe for the picking. Some might say the cat is out of the bag, others might say the rabbit is popping out of the hat. I’m not going to go into much more about it, and I’m not even going to hint whether or not this story jives with what else I’ve heard. All I can say is, the rabbit seems like he’s ready to come out of his hat again.

Like a Phoenix rising from the ashes?

[jk88]

Breaking NEWS

Breaking NEWS
by TimR on August 19, 2011

SaabsUnited can confirm from very reliable sources, very close to the management of Saab, that our previous news regarding Endeavour Advisory Group are true.

The sources also claim that the amount discussed includes taking out the 217 Million EIB loan in a combination of bank loans and equity.

This would bring the cooperation to the top 3 private equity firms in the USA.

[VI009DZ]

what a F-show.

[aireeca]

The neat thing? It's not only in Sweden....

I just got a parts postcard in the mail from the dealer who refused to give me a new gear shift knob under my CPO and instead glued the old broken one back on.

Any guesses what part they want me to come pick up?

[Feffman]

Sweden Debt Collector Starts Seizing Saab Assets

Fri Aug 19, 2011
8:49am EDT

Aug 19 (Reuters) - Sweden's Enforcement Authority said on Friday it had started to seize assets of cash-strapped Saab Automobile in an attempt to recover 5.1 million Swedish crowns ($794,000) in debts owed to suppliers.

"One of the banks to which we have sent requests (about seizing Saab assets), SEB, has answererd. We have found money at SEB," Hans Ryberg at the Enforcement Authority said.

The money in the account is now frozen.

"SEB will report on Monday how much money we have seized there," Ryberg said.

Shares in Swedish Automobile, which owns Saab, fell 13 percent at 1241 GMT.

[Hirsch]

I swear, the Swedish government wants Saab to fail.

[Palmer]

All this over 800k.


WTF.

[aireeca]

Seems like a pretty small bill to pay. These folks think they might know where some of the money went, though.

[Feffman]

Originally Posted by Palmer

All this over 800k.


WTF.

My thoughts exactly. From the conspiracy side, maybe they want Saab to go bust and then the white knight steps in to buy the pieces REAL cheap.

Feff

[DrewP]

Originally Posted by Sweden Debt Collector

"One of the banks to which we have sent requests (about seizing Saab assets), SEB, has answererd. We have found money at SEB," Hans Ryberg at the Enforcement Authority said.

LOL.

What did they think they were going to find, rhubarb pie?

[secret ingredient]

Originally Posted by DrewP

LOL.

What did they think they were going to find, rhubarb pie?

Maybe they had the munchies? I dunno, sometimes people are crazy.