Saab production has been temporarily shut down pending renegotiations with unpaid suppliers. It is standard practice in the industry to build out vehicles and delay payments, but Saab is risky and unstable, with suppliers less willing to extend credit.

According to Alrik Söderlind at Auto Motor & Sport, Saab’s additional funding and ownership from Russian investor Vladimir Antonov is being held up by the Swedish government:

Saabs survival is a matter of weeks. The money must come now. Vladimir Antonov wants nothing more than to come in as a part-owner in SAAB, or to be correct: Spyker NV. The decision lies with the government. I called the finance ministers secretary Hans Lindblad, who works with the process, he hung up…

The faith of SAAB lies with the Government. We are not talking about loans or more guarantees. Its all about allowing Vladimir Antonov become a part owner. The process is running but if it takes too long it will be meaningless.

Thursday evening I called the finance minister Anders Borg’s secretary for a comment:
– How is the process proceeding?
– What problems does the government see with Antonov as part-owner?
– Is there anything else pointing against Antonov as part-ower?
– How serious is the situation?
– How long will it take?
– Does one realize that SAAB’s future is dependent on the result but also on the speed of the process?

But Hans Lindblad would not speak to me, all he wanted to know was from where I got his phone number… When he didn’t get that information the conversation was over.

I hope that the level of the discussions internally within the government is higher and they realize how serious this is. Is there any strong reasons for saying now to Antonov then of course the answer must be now but tell us which those reasons are. One has to do this with haste. The question regarding Antonov is nothing new, Antonov was denied partnership not by GM but by the Swedish Government and one went along with the Governments issue due to the fact that without the approval from the government SAAB would not be able to take part of the so important EIB Loans. It wasn’t GM who took the initiative to stop Antonov, it was the Governments requirement. The inquiry made by the Government about Antonov should have been completed long ago. Lets hope that the governments slowness doesn’t bring SAAB down.

From Reuters:

Antonov, who has said he has been the target of false allegations of money laundering and other financial crimes, was ousted from Spyker’s deal to buy Saab from General Motors in 2010. He has said investigations have cleared his name and that GM, which retained preference shares in Saab and is also a supplier, is now ready to let him back as a shareholder.

Specifically, the restrictions came from US and Swedish governments who were investigating Antonov, not General Motors. The Swedish government is reluctant to allow his investment, which would give him a 30% stake in Saab. Antonov’s fortune was created by acquiring, rebuilding, and selling Russian banks. He considers himself a corporate turnaround artist.

Saabs United is following the story. The Swedish government will hold a press conference later today.

More details:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/08/business/global/08saab.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss