Is China’s Youngman going to save Saab finally?

Switch to desktop Register

Is China’s Youngman going to save Saab finally?

Category: Brandwatch Published Date Hits: 160

Russian investor Vladimir Antonov says he is no longer part of a plan to buy and then lease back property to Saab and stalled Saab isn’t giving up that easily as it tries its luck once again with another possible Chinese rescuer. Youngman, better known for building re-badged Proton and Lotus cars, MAN trucks and Neoplan buses for the Chinese market is the latest would-be saviour for Saab Automobile. Youngman Automobile [full name Zhejiang Youngman Lotus Automobile Co Ltd] is reported to have signed a three-way deal with Saab owner Spyker Cars NV and its new Chinese distributor Pang Da Automobile for joint ventures. The agreement suggests not only make and distribute Saab cars in China but also create a sub brand – tentatively dubbed ‘Child’.

Should all go well, Youngman will buy a 29.9 per cent slice of Spyker to become the Chinese manufacturing partner for the strategic alliance and Pang Da will be responsible for distribution through its huge dealership network of more than 1100 outlets.

Although, the deal is worth €245mn, the catch is that it still needs to be approved by Chinese and Swedish authorities and third parties such as General Motors and the European Investment Bank. It may be recalled that in Saab’s previous attempt with Hawtai Motor, the stumbling block came from the aforementioned organisations. The latest attempt to shore up the ailing Swedish brand comes as Saab tries to wrap up the sale of its Trollhattan facilities and lease them back to ease its cash crunch.

blog comments powered by DISQUS back to top

Top Desktop version