Six months after going bankrupt and having its assets purchased, the Saab brand is finally on the road to being revived. Earlier this week, Qingdao city's investment company, the State Power Group and National Electric Vehicle Sweden, which purchased Saab's chief assets last June, signed an agreement to construct a new 10 billion yuan ($1.59b) automobile factory in the city, the Nanfang Daily reported last weekend. The factory will build traditionally gas powered and new energy vehicles under the Saab name.
Following news of Saab's bankruptcy last year, an intense bidding war for the manufacturer's assets took place. Ultimately, National Electric Vehicle Sweden (NEVS) purchased the main assets of Saab Automobile, Saab Automobile Powertrain and Saab Automobile Tools. NEVS is owned by National Modern Energy Holdings, a Hong Kong-based company which is also the parent company of State Power Group.
NEVS has previously announced its plans to expand into the new energy vehicle field. The company plans to release a new electric vehicles based on the same technology powering the Saab 9-3, as well introduce a brand new design based on the Phoenix platform. The vehicles will reportedly be targeted at the Chinese market.
However, any plans to produce Saabs in China will still require government approval. How easy it will be for NEVS to gain official certification is a matter of debate.
