Dutch billionaire behind Spyker bid for Saab: report

• Source: Global Times
• [00:16 December 23 2009]
• Comments

An unidentified Dutch billionaire is behind Dutch sports car maker Spyker's last-ditch bid to buy ailing Swedish carmaker Saab from General Motors, a Swedish newspaper reported Tuesday.

"Several sources close to the talks refer to a Dutch billionaire," daily Svenska Dagbladet said.

Spyker renewed its bid for loss-making Saab on Sunday, two days after GM broke off talks with the Dutch group and said it would begin winding down the iconic Swedish brand.

Representatives from GM and Spyker held fresh talks on Spyker's new bid on Monday in Stockholm.

Swedish press reports have suggested that one of the main reasons GM agreed to resume the talks was that the Dutch group had addressed GM's hesitations over Spyker's Russian investors.

Svenska Dagbladet reported Monday that Spyker's main investors with a 29.3 percent stake in the company, Vladimir and Alexander Antonov, were no longer behind the Dutch group's bid for Saab.

And Tuesday, the paper said Spyker's second-biggest investor, Abu Dhabi state investment fund Mubadala Development, which owns 22.7 percent of Spyker, was not involved in the bid for Saab either.

The paper also said GM had also been concerned about letting technical know-how go to Russia.

"The risks involved with letting Saab's technical know-how go to Russia also played a role," it said.

GM has refused to comment on Spyker's renewed bid.

The Dutch group announced late Monday that it was extending its offer for Saab, initially valid until Monday at 2200 GMT, "until further notice."

AFP