Even as other potential buyers circle Saab, Beijing Automotive Industry Holding has struck a tentative agreement for the right to produce several of the beleaguered Swedish manufacturer’s models, Nelson D. Schwartz of The New York Times reported Sunday.
If completed, people close to the negotiations said Sunday, the agreement would allow Beijing Automotive to produce older versions of the Saab 9-3 and 9-5 in China, but not prevent a separate deal for the entire company, a unit of General Motors.
The fate of Saab’s 3,500 workers in Trollhattan, Sweden, was uncertain after the unexpected collapse last month of a deal between G.M. and the high-end automaker Koenigsegg for Saab.
Nevertheless, a pact with state-owned Beijing Automotive “would be good for Sweden, good for China and good for Saab,” according to a Saab official who insisted on anonymity because the discussions were not final.
A spokesman for G.M. declined to comment. However, several buyers are reportedly still negotiating to buy Saab, including Renco, owned by the American financier Ira L. Rennert, and Spyker Cars, a specialty Dutch automaker.
Beijing Automotive was one of Koenigsegg’s backers in the earlier acquisition plan, potentially contributing $200 million to $300 million toward the deal. The Chinese automaker has long coveted Saab’s engineering expertise, but the leaders at Saab are eager to prevent a breakup of their 60-year-old company.
The deal would not cover Saab’s new version of the 9-5, a luxury sedan, which is scheduled to arrive in showrooms in April. It is the first update of Saab’s top-end car in 12 years.
The 9-5 would compete with other European luxury cars like the Audi A6 and BMW 5-series and be priced in the $40,000 range.
In 1990, G.M. paid $600 million for half of Saab, and anted up $125 million in 2000 for the rest of the company, which has long commanded a small but loyal following in the United States for its idiosyncratic but stylish models.
However, sales suffered recent years as drivers felt Saab had lost its distinctive identity under the sway of Detroit.
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