Report: Hope for Hummer sale hinges on “offshore investment vehicle”
General Motors’ former Saab brand may be safe under the new ownership of Spyker Cars L.V., but the Detroit automaker’s Hummer brand remains on shaky ground. GM has, in principle, agreed to sell its Hummer brand to China’s Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Co., but it looks as though the deal is grinding to a halt.
Although a contract has been in place between the two companies since October 2009, Tengzhong is having trouble navigating through China’s regulatory system in order to complete the acquisition of the Hummer brand. GM agreed to extend the expiration of the contract by one month in late January, but there has been no indication the deal will be finalized by the end of February.
Tengzhong is now exploring the option of purchasing the Hummer brand via an “offshore investment vehicle”, thereby sidestepping Chinese regulations. However, the outlook on that scenario is dubious, at best, leaving the fate of the off-road brand in the balance.
Tengzhong’s current deadline to acquire the Hummer brand is set for the end of this month.
References
1. ‘Tengzhong may buy Hummer…’ view
Source: Leftlane
