Pointing to an instance two years ago, Maarten van der Pas alleges that Spyker bought a Formula 1 Team only to use an earmarked loan to pay off its own debts. He thinks that the company could be planning a similar move with its purchase of Saab.
Speaking to Swedish daily Dagens Industri, van der Pas says that Spyker doesn’t have much to gain on purchasing Saab. Because the Dutch company’s line of cars differs so much from Saab’s models, there is no incentive for technology exchange or knowledge transfer, a common reason for such purchases.
Saab has less than two weeks to find a new owner, as current owner General Motors has said it will shut down the financially-troubled car company if an agreement isn’t reached by the end of the year. Dutch company Spyker is the last in a line of buyers that have teased with the idea of buying the Swedish car giant.
Spyker does not want to comment on van der Pas’s accusations.
