Production of Saab cars halted on April 6, following a dispute with suppliers over unpaid bills. However, the troubled Swedish carmaker managed to strike a deal with China’s Pang Da Automobile, and Saab received €30 million (US$42.8 million) in advance to help it restart production.
Pang Da Automobile’s CEO Mr Pang Qinghua, visited the Trollhättan factory together with CEO and Chairman of Saab Automobile, Victor Muller, and witnessed the first vehicle to roll off the assembly line. Saab said 100 cars were built on the first day of resumption but plans to “increase the daily production rate in the coming weeks in parallel with the full re-establishment of the supply chain”.
Commenting on the restart of manufacturing at the Swedish plant, Victor Muller said: “This is a great day for our company and it is great to see the plant running again. We have gone through a rough patch in recent weeks, but Saab is back in action again. I would like to express my deep gratitude to our fantastic suppliers who have worked so hard with us to make this happen, and to our loyal employees who have constantly stood by our side.”
A Saab spokesperson said that the automaker has to fill around 8,100 orders including 1,300 cars ordered by Pang Da Automobile as part of the rescue deal. Under the agreement, the Chinese company paid €30 million for the purchase of the 1,300 cars and will buy a second batch of vehicles for €15 million within the next month. In addition, Pang Da Automobile will take a 24 per cent stake in Saab’s parent company Spyker for €65 million and establish a joint-venture for distributing cars in China.
Source: Saab
Pang Da Automobile’s CEO Mr Pang Qinghua, visited the Trollhättan factory together with CEO and Chairman of Saab Automobile, Victor Muller, and witnessed the first vehicle to roll off the assembly line. Saab said 100 cars were built on the first day of resumption but plans to “increase the daily production rate in the coming weeks in parallel with the full re-establishment of the supply chain”.
Commenting on the restart of manufacturing at the Swedish plant, Victor Muller said: “This is a great day for our company and it is great to see the plant running again. We have gone through a rough patch in recent weeks, but Saab is back in action again. I would like to express my deep gratitude to our fantastic suppliers who have worked so hard with us to make this happen, and to our loyal employees who have constantly stood by our side.”
A Saab spokesperson said that the automaker has to fill around 8,100 orders including 1,300 cars ordered by Pang Da Automobile as part of the rescue deal. Under the agreement, the Chinese company paid €30 million for the purchase of the 1,300 cars and will buy a second batch of vehicles for €15 million within the next month. In addition, Pang Da Automobile will take a 24 per cent stake in Saab’s parent company Spyker for €65 million and establish a joint-venture for distributing cars in China.
Source: Saab
