Rumour: Mahindra acquires majority stake in NEVS - Saab

Our previous article revealed Mahindra's interest in buying stake in Swedish car maker Saab Automobiles. A document filed in the Swedish Court by a creditor (a British consultant) of National Electric Vehicle Sweden (NEVS) suggests that Mahindra & Mahindra is about to acquire majority stake in NEVS - Saab. 

National Electric Vehicle Sweden Ab, a Swedish registered company, acquired the main assets of Saab from the bankruptcy receivers on August 31, 2012. Back then too, Mahindra was keen on purchasing a stake in Saab or the company entirely.

NEVS seeked protection from its creditors in August when it struggled to deliver a targeted production of 1.20 lakh cars per annum by 2016. No cars were produced since May 2014 due to the lack of funds. NEVS is unable to pay its creditors after one of its shareholders - Qingbo Investment Co. failed to invest $155 million.

Lars Eric Gustafsson, NEVS's admin, stated that the 'Asian car maker' (name not disclosed) has signed an agreement to purchase majority stake in the company. The 'Asian car maker' has also agreed to finance NEVS' operating costs of $6.2 million per month till the agreement is completed by February 2015.

Acquiring the Saab brand will considerably widen Mahindra's portfolio. It is believed that M&M is interested in Saab's engineering and design capabilities.

Source: Nasdaq and Automotive News Europe