Several groups seek to purchase Saturn auto brand
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Penske Automotive Group, Inc., an Ohio-based investment group and Telesto Ventures have indicated separately that they are interested in purchasing the Saturn auto brand from General Motors (GM).
According to The Wall Street Journal, Nissan-Renault is interested in purchasing Saturn. Bloomberg, however, indicated that Nissan-Renault may be a partner of Penske's potential bid. If Penske acquired the brand, they would distribute Saturn vehicles and outsource the assembly.
GM revealed that the Saturn brand along with Saab and Hummer were up for sale when unveiling their restructuring plans to Congress for governmental loans. While the Pontiac brand was originally to be a niche brand, GM had changed their plans recently and decided to eliminate the brand.
Telesto Ventures is an investment group that includes private equity firm Black Oak Partners LLC of Oklahoma City and several Saturn dealerships. Initially, Telesto will purchase Saturn branded cars from GM then act as a general retailer for foreign brands. Telesto is in talks with several foreign manufacturers.
The Ohio group includes many former senior auto company managers plus private financial backers, chemists and engineers who live in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana and Florida. This group plans to initially purchase cars from GM then purchase existing but closed plants due to automaker restructuring. Additionally, one of the partners indicated a willingness to accept some "legacy" cost in relation to the United Auto Workers. The Ohio group is also pursuing possible loans or other support from national and state governments.
GM is reviewing several offers for Saturn. GM has contracted with S.J. Girsky & Co. to advise them on the sale.
Related news
- "General Motors automobile sales plunge by 45%" — Wikinews, April 1, 2009
- "US stock markets reach 12-year lows" — Wikinews, March 5, 2009
- "US automakers GM and Chrysler seek more government aid" — Wikinews, February 18, 2009
- "Automobile sales in the United States down sharply" — Wikinews, February 3, 2009
- "Wikinews Shorts: December 20, 2008#US government gives automakers $17.4 billion in bail-out loans" — Wikinews, December 20, 2008
- "White House considering auto rescue plan" — Wikinews, December 13, 2008
- "US automaker bailout deal fails to pass Senate" — Wikinews, December 12, 2008
- "Wikinews Shorts: December 7, 2008#'Progress' seen in US auto bailout deal" — Wikinews, December 7, 2008
- "Wikinews_Shorts: November 7, 2008#GM reports 2.5_billion US.24 loss for third quarter" — Wikinews, November 7, 2008
Sources
- Colum Wood. "Nissan-Renault Latest Candidate to Buy Saturn" — VerticalScope, May 6 2009
- Robert Snell. "Penske may make play for Saturn" — Detroit News, May 5, 2009
- "Pontiac Brand to be Eliminated After 83 Years" — WXYZ-TV, April 27, 2009
- Colum Wood. "Group of Investors Looking to Buy Saturn, Transform Dealerships into Retailers for Foreign Cars" — VerticalScope, April 15 2009
- Bill Vlasic and David M. Herszenhorn. "Pursuing U.S. Aid, G.M. Accepts Need for Drastic Cuts" — New York Times, December 2, 2008