Currently reading: BAIC admits Saab interest

GM board to meet tomorrow to decide Saab's fate

BAIC's general manager has admitted the company is still interested in buying Saab.

Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Corp had been a minority partner in the failed takeover planned by Koenigsegg.

Now, asked whether BAIC would consider approaching GM to buy Saab outright or as part of a consortium, its general manager Wang Dazong said: "I would just say, 'stay tuned a little bit.'"

However, GM is understood to be concerned at the prospect of handing its intellectual property rights over to a rival car maker - a problem which undermined BAIC's interest in Opel/Vauxhall earlier this year.

Regardless, Wang underlined BAIC's determination to become a global car maker.

"For us, I don't see a need to buy a plant. I don't see a need to buy a building. I don't see a need to buy a robot. So what's left? You figure it out," he said.

"I cannot control GM's timetable. I would just say we are very dynamic and impatient people. We want to do things fast."

Asked what he liked about Saab, Wang said: "Saab, as I said before, has a pretty good brand. It has global recognition and a good history. From my dealing with them, it has pretty good people and a pretty good technology depth as well."

GM's board is due to meet tomorrow (Tuesday) to decide whether to seek a new buyer or put Saab into liquidation.

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