Saab filed for bankruptcy. Today's news is the conclusion of a long journey that lasted 30 years which, passing through bailout plans and dismemberment, brought the historic Swedish car manufacturer from being the rising star of the 4-wheeler market to the austere benches of a Scandinavian bankruptcy court . The statement of the Vanersborb judges is peremptory and leaves no room for hope.
Saab's recent history has been characterized by several rescue attempts. After General Motors stopped production at the beginning of 2010, the Americans were taken over by Spyker Cars (now Swedish Automobile), a Dutch-registered company owned by the Swedish Victor Muller, who used the financing of the Russian Vladimir Antonov for the operation. After resuming production Saab received a loan of 4,1 billion crowns (about 400 million euros) from the European Investment Bank, a loan that had been guaranteed by the Swedish government whose exposure in the matter is to be verified. The debt office of the Scandinavian country has guaranteed the EIB liquidity for 275 million euros and the liquidation of Saab's assets should be sufficient to avoid sacrifices by the exchequer. Following the disappointing results on the market, an attempt was made to try to get out of the black hole agreement with Chinese manufacturers Pang Da and Zhejiang Youngman Lotus Automobile, but the possibility of a solution was abruptly wiped out by today's news.
Born to produce airplanes Saab had specialized in the automotive market after the Second World War. The company, which currently counts 3700 employees, it had risen to prominence in the early 80s when, taking advantage of the devaluation of the Crown, it had built a good international market, earning an excellent reputation for product reliability and technological innovation.
