In a move that was more or less anticipated after the recent plague of problems, Saab today announced that it will not be present at the most prestigious automotive event of the year, the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show.
“Presence at the show requires resources that Saab are currently allocating towards the restart of production in Trollhattan,” said a posting on the Swedish firm’s official blog. “Whilst it would be desireable to be at the show to help further Saab’s global presence, it is not considered an appropriate use of resources at this time.”
Saab has been struggling to pay its suppliers for months now and even delayed payments to its white-collar workers in July. As a result, the company halted production at its Trollhättan factory in April and May, resumed temporarily only to stop once again on June 8 and has yet to restart.
Now, it is reported that unless Saab pays two suppliers around $620,000 by the end of Tuesday, Sweden’s Debt Enforcement Agency will be forced tomorrow to start a collection process against the automaker. The two suppliers are Kongsberg Automotive AB, a Norwegian car seat parts manufacturer, and Infotiv AB, a Gothenburg, Sweden-based consulting firm.
“The collection process that may start tomorrow would include investigating Saab’s bank accounts and potentially also other assets,” Hans Ryberg, a division chief at the state agency, told Bloomberg news.
Saab wouldn’t say on what it plans to do. “We’re of course totally aware of this situation with the collection agency, but I can’t comment on what we’re going to do,” said Eric Geers, a Saab spokesman.
According to Bloomberg, more than 100 debt claims have been filed against Saab with Sweden’s collection agency.
