Spyker auto news

Official: Swedish Automobile changes name back to Spyker

What's in a name? Just ask the people at Spyker.

Back in 2010, the small Dutch producer of exotic GTs bought an ailing Saab from General Motors and proceeded to focus all its energies on keeping it afloat. And as if to reflect that shift in focus, changed its name to Swedish Automobile NV - or SWAN for short.

Now that Saab has gone bankrupt, however, the Dutch holding company has officially changed its name back to Spyker. Just what that means, however, when the cars are built in the UK by CPP and the sportscar business was sold last year to North Street Capital, remains to be seen.

Continue reading Swedish Automobile changes name back to Spyker

Report: Spyker considers closure as Saab parent Swedish Auto loses board members

Swedish Automobile NV ('Swan') continues to look to sell Dutch supercar manufacturer Spyker in the wake of the Saab bankruptcy. Swan said it will carry on with the sale despite the fact that the company's supervisory board has just abandoned the crippled enterprise. According to The Washington Post, Swan announced it had begun negotiations to sell Spyker last September to a private equity firm for $41 million. Now the company says proceeds from that sale won't be enough to ensure that Swan can meet its liabilities. If the company can't complete the sale or find extra funding, Swan may go belly up and take Spyker with it.

All three members of the Swan supervisory board resigned due to a "difference of opinion" with the company's CEO, Victor Muller over funding alternatives. Shares in the automaker have since plummeted by around 12 percent. The company's articles of association allow for the holder of a single priority share in the company to name new board members. In this case, that holder is believed to be controversial Russian tycoon Vladimir Antonov.

Click past the break for two press releases on the recent changes at Swan.

Continue reading Spyker considers closure as Saab parent Swedish Auto loses board members

Submit your questions for Autoblog Podcast #261 LIVE

We record Episode #261 of the Autoblog Podcast tonight, and you can drop us your questions via our Q&A module below. Check out our discussion topics or chime in to help determine what else the crew chats about this evening. Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes if you haven't already done so, and if you want to take it all in live, tune in to our UStream (audio only) channel at 10:00 PM Eastern tonight.

Discussion Topics for Autoblog Podcast Episode #261

• Saab files for bankruptcy
• Kraft pushing for 97,000lb trucks
• NACTOY finalists
• 100 Worst Cars of All Time

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Report: Swedish Automobile may be forced to liquidate even if Saab sale goes through

Bloomberg reports that Saab parent Swedish Automobile's many dealings would raise 132 million euros ($181 million U.S.) - if everything goes according to plan. That's a big if, and it still doesn't outweigh the 136.5 million euros ($188M) that Swedish Automobile reportedly owes its creditors. According to Bloomberg, that could mean that the company may liquidate regardless of whether or not the sale to Zhejiang Youngman Lotus Automobile and Pang Da Automobile Trade Co. goes through.

According to the report, Swedish Automobile could get through the sale without liquidation if it can wrap up the sale of Spyker. Private equity firm North Street Capital LP has tentatively agreed to purchase Spyker for 32 million euros ($43 million U.S.). That sounds like a done deal, but given the company's recent fortunes, we wouldn't necessarily count on all going according to plan.

Breaking: Spyker sold to U.S. private equity firm

According to a report by the Financial Times, Spyker Cars has been offloaded to a Connecticut-based private equity firm after a deal to sell the supercar manufacturer to another set of investors failed a few months back.

North Street Capital, LP is the supposed new owner of Spyker, which Saab had been attempting to sell earlier this year. Negotiations were originally being hashed out between Saab and a partnership between a British and Russian consortium and Vladimir Antonov, which just recently announced plans to build a modern interpretation of the Jensen Interceptor.

As of today (9/28/2011), the terms of the deal haven't been released by either Saab or North Street Capital. Clearly though, considering how cash-strapped the company is, Saab is in desperate need of a funding infusion. We'll update this post with more details as they become available.

Report: Spyker CFO steps down, Saab gets big order

Spyker has announced that Hans Go will step down as the company's Chief Financial Officer on July 1. Automotive News reports that since the sports car manufacturer's operations are being sold to Vladimir Antonov, the Spyker group will now focus solely on Saab. Rob Schuyt is currently acting CFO for the company, but the Swedish automaker is expected announce a permanent CFO later this year. Schuyt is also serving as the statutory director of Saab as well. Meanwhile, things are looking up for the embattled carmaker, as its new Chinese partner Pang Da placed an order for a whopping 630 vehicles.

All told, that deal will be worth around €15 million, or $21.69 million at current conversion rates. According to Automotive News, Pang Da eventually wants to snag a 24 percent equity stake in Saab for a total investment of around €65 million ($94M). That stake is part of a greater deal worth around €110 million ($160M).

Official: Spyker to be renamed Swedish Automobile N.V. as Pang Da talks with Chinese gov't.

Spyker is on a Chinese money hunt, and it appears the automaker may have found a partner willing to pony up the cash. Pang Da, a Chinese automobile distribution company, had recently entered into a memorandum of understanding with Spyker. Now, Spyker is set to rename itself Swedish Automobile N.V., and the Saab-owner believes Chinese authorities will give the green light for this deal to proceed.

According to Saab CEO Victor Muller, a very important portion of the deal has already gone through; a cash infusion of €30 million ($42M USD). Muller states that "Pang Da's advance payment and sales of imported Saab cars are not subject to approval from the NDRC. The first advance payment of EUR 30 million was received last Tuesday."

Bloomberg reports that the rest of the deal may not move forward so easily. According to analysts in China, the country's government is unlikely to allow Pang Da's purchase of a stake in Swedish Automobile N.V. because the nation is working to consolidate its auto industry, not expand it.

If approved, however, Pang Da will spend $91 million and receive a 23 percent share of the automaker's business. Despite the negative view of Chinese analysts, Pang Da says it remains confident the transaction will be approved.

Continue reading Spyker to be renamed Swedish Automobile N.V. as Pang Da talks with Chinese gov't.

Saab on the money hunt, still in discussions with Great Wall Motor?

Earlier this morning came word that Saab's deal with Chinese automaker Hawtai had fallen apart. While in discussions with Hawtai, parent company Spyker was evidently also talking with another automaker located in China - Great Wall Motors. According to Reuters, those talks have apparently never ended, and, in light of today's news, we're going to speculate that it's time to escalate the discussion or officially turn off the lights at Saab assembly plants.

Great Wall has cash and Saab has cars, technology and a dealer network. The two companies could be mutually beneficial, but there are hurdles to overcome before anything can actually happen. The Chinese government must approve a foreign joint venture before it moves forward. Still, it's a good sign that companies are still interested in working with Spyker, and that could keep Saab alive.

Spyker isn't simply pinning all of its hopes on Great Wall, as other Chinese companies are also on its radar. Besides a potential Chinese investor, however, Spyker and Saab are still hoping to see their European Investment Bank drawdown approved. Once either scenario plays out favorably, Saab can resume producing automobiles.

Saab closing in on deal with Russian, Chinese investors

Around the same time that Ake Jonsson stepped down as chief executive of Saab, the Swedish automaker announced its expansion into the Russian and Chinese markets - a vital move if Saab is to increase its global market share. But it's not just the cars that Saab and its parent company Spyker are interested in selling in these two giant markets. It's also looking to offload shares in an effort to raise much-needed capital.

The first address is Vladimir Antonov, a man who shares a considerable history with Spyker. The Russian banker and multimillionaire oligarch was once the company's largest single shareholder and acted as its chairman, and is also the owner of CPP Manufacturing, to which Spyker sold its own sportscar business. After investigations alleged ties to organized crime, however, General Motors stipulated that Antonov had to leave the company before it would transfer ownership of Saab. Those allegations have apparently now been either disproven or swept under the rug as Antonov has now been cleared by both GM and the Swedish National Debt Office to invest as much as 30 million euros in Saab for a 30-percent stake in the company.

Following that revelation, Saab is also said to be closing in on a deal with a major Chinese carmaker, following a similar path that led crosstown rival Volvo to align itself with Geely following its sale by Ford. Among the manufacturers with which Spyker is reportedly undergoing discussions are the Great Wall Motor Co., China Youngman Automobile Group and Jiangsu Yueda Group, all relatively small players even in China's domestic market. Even so, they could provide the capital Saab needs to continue operating, and if they can, Saab's certainly in no position to pick and choose.

Spyker announces plan to sell, lease back Saab real estate

Momma always told us not to bite off more than we could chew, but that may be exactly what Spyker has done with Saab. The small Dutch outfit - which had trouble supporting its own Formula One team a few years back - bought the Swedish automaker from General Motors, but has been running into some problems.

Suppliers forced Saab to halt production due to lack of payment a couple of weeks ago, and then again last week, reports indicating that the company owes over a million in unpaid bills. Spyker, for its part, tried to raise some funds by selling off its own automotive operations, but that didn't seem to quite do the trick. So in a new initiative, Spyker has announced plans to sell Saab's real estate property and then lease it back.

The initiative - which is still in the planning phase - ought to help Spyker and Saab raise free up some resources in order to fund continued production, but other steps, like convincing the Swedish government to help free up some loan monies, is also going to be necessary to the brand's survival.

Continue reading Spyker announces plan to sell, lease back Saab real estate