Saab seeking protection from creditors
Reuters are reporting that Saab are to seek the protection of Swedish courts to allow it to get finance in place.
Another day, another Saab story.
But the reports that Saab are to seek the protection of the courts in Sweden from the actions of creditors does ring true. And it does add up.
It adds up because the rumblings of dissent are, unsurprisingly, increasing from the workforce and from trade suppliers. There have already been moves by creditors threatening bankruptcy petitions, and only last week trade creditors Kongsberg Automotive and the Infotiv Consulting Group got the Swedish Debt Office in to get their money, Which they did.
The problem with that is that it will probably encourage others to take the same route. The money owed to Kongsberg Automotive and the Infotiv Consulting Group was just €620k – which is why Saab managed to clear it when things got dicey – but if bigger creditors take the same route Saab will be buggered.
By seeking court protection – which Saab did before during the debacle of its sale by GM – creditors would be kept at bay whilst the courts worked with Saab to achieve corporate restructuring. Which is exactly what Victor Muller wants.
By our reckoning, the deal Saab struck with Pang Da and Youngman should get a green light (if it’s going to) from the Chinese Government by late September or early October.
If Saab takes action now to keep afloat by asking for court protection, the investments from China could arrive in time to demonstrate a financially viable restructuring to the courts, and put Saab back in business. It’s a big ‘if’.
But it is a plan.
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