Beijing Auto fails Saab bid too

It seems Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Corp (BAIC) will miss GM's Saab unit again not long after Canadian supplier Magna International and Russian Sberbank acquired GM's Opel operations.

A Jalopnik report say the bidding for GM's Saab division could be at an end--Swedish supercar maker Koenigsegg will take over control of Saab, possibly by next week.

A letter of intent on the deal has been signed between Koenigsegg and GM.

Now only Ford's Volvo is left for Beijing Auto, though with that bid it may still faces competitors including Geely Automobile Holdings, Ford's Chinese partner Chongqing Changan Automobile and Chery Automobile domestically.

Analysts said BAIC desperately need technology and designs that could then be used in its first self-developed car, which it hopes to roll out in 2010.

BAIC currently makes only Mercedes-Benz and Accent cars at joint ventures with Daimler and Hyundai Motor.