北汽将收购萨博部分资产

Beijing Auto To Buy Some Saab Assets

北汽将收购萨博部分资产

Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co. has reached a tentative deal to acquire certain assets of General Motors Co.'s Saab unit, including intellectual property for two sedans and equipment to produce those cars, according to a person with direct knowledge of the agreement.

北京汽车工业控股有限责任公司(Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co.，简称：北汽控股)已经达成初步协议，将收购通用汽车(General Motors)旗下萨博(Saab)的部分资产，包括两款轿车的知识产权和生产设备。这是一位对协议有直接了解的人士透露的消息。

The deal, sealed over the weekend in Sweden, will enable Beijing Auto, one of China's main state-owned auto makers, to integrate the Saab technology into its own vehicles. The agreement covers some models of Saab's 9-3 compact sedan series and the current 9-5 midsize car, along with their engines and transmissions, the person said.

周末在瑞典达成的这份协议将允许北汽控股把萨博的技术整合进自己的汽车里。北汽控股是中国主要国有汽车生产商之一。这位知情人士说，协议包括萨博9-3紧凑型轿车系列的部分车型、萨博9-5中型车新款，以及它们的发动机和变速器。

Financial terms of the agreement weren't immediately available, but the person said Beijing Auto plans to finance the acquisition in part through loans from Chinese state banks, and noted that the company already has a 20 billion yuan ($2.93 billion) line of credit from Bank of China.

协议的财务条款还不能立即获得，但知情人士表示，北汽控股计划利用来自中国国有银行的贷款为收购提供部分资金，并提到，该公司已经拥有中国银行人民币200亿元 (29.3亿美元)的信用额度。

An announcement regarding the deal is expected to be made soon, said the person, who added that Beijing Auto and GM were continuing to negotiate over other possible aspects of cooperation on Sunday.

知情人士说，有关这一协议的公告预计将很快做出，另外，周日北汽控股和通用汽车还在继续就其他可能的合作方面进行谈判。

The deal is part of a broader push by China to create a small number of globally competitive auto makers through domestic consolidation and by acquiring troubled foreign auto makers or their technology. Chinese car makers are gaining strength thanks in part to a home market that has boomed as the rest of the world has sputtered. China's domestic passenger-vehicle sales were up about 50% in the year's first 11 months, and the country is on pace to post total vehicle sales of more than 13 million vehicles this year, surpassing the U.S. as the world's biggest auto market.

中国努力通过在国内进行合并，并收购陷入困境的国外汽车生产商或其技术，从而打造少数具有全球竞争力的汽车生产商。北汽的协议即这一努力过程的一部分。中国汽车生产商的实力正在增强，部分原因在于，当世界其他市场陷入低迷之际，中国国内市场却现出蓬勃生机。今年前11个月，中国国内的乘用车销量增长了大约50%，今年全年的汽车销售总量可能会达到1300万辆以上，从而超过美国成为世界最大的汽车市场。

Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., a privately owned Chinese car maker, was named by Ford Motor Co. in October as the preferred bidder for its Swedish unit, Volvo. And a Chinese machinery maker earlier this year struck a deal to buy GM's Hummer unit, although that deal still awaits government approval. Beijing Auto was a leading contender earlier this year to buy GM's Opel GmbH unit in Europe, before the U.S. company chose another suitor, and, later, canceled the sale.

10月份，浙江吉利控股集团(Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co.)被福特汽车(Ford Motor Co.)选为旗下瑞典公司沃尔沃(Volvo)的优先竞标人。今年早些时候，一家中国机械制造厂达成收购通用汽车旗下悍马(Hummer)的协议，但目前还没有得到政府批准。今年早些时候收购通用汽车欧洲品牌欧宝(Opel GmbH)的过程中，北汽曾经是牵头竞标人，但后来通用选择了另一家竞标人，再后来取消了出售欧宝。

Selling Saab is a key element of GM's revitalization strategy, but the U.S. auto maker has struggled to seal a deal. Last month Swedish sports-car maker Koenigsegg Group AB unexpectedly dropped a separate bid for Saab. Beijing Auto had been putting the finishing touches on a deal to help Koenigsegg finance that acquisition, in exchange for which the Chinese company was supposed to secure access to Saab's technology and know-how.

出售萨博是通用汽车重组战略的关键要素，但这家美国公司一直难于达成一项协议。瑞典跑车生产商柯尼塞格(Koenigsegg Group AB)上个月意外宣布退出收购萨博。当时的竞购过程中，北汽帮助柯尼塞格为收购融资，作为交换，北汽将获得萨博的技术和经验。

Other potential investors in Saab since the Koenigsegg deal collapsed have included investor Ira Rennert's Renco Inc. and Wyoming-based Merbanco LLC, founded by merchant banker Christopher Johnston. GM's bankers informed Merbanco about two weeks ago that it was not invited to participate in further talks about Saab.

自柯尼塞格收购萨博的交易破裂以来，萨博的其他潜在投资者还有雷纳特(Ira Rennert)持有的Renco Inc.和由商人银行家约翰森(Christopher Johnston)创立的、位于怀俄明州的Merbanco LLC。通用汽车的银行家大约两周前告知Merbanco，它没有被邀请参加围绕萨博的进一步谈判。

'We are negotiating on various aspects of Saab and will announce when there is any further development,' a GM spokesman said Sunday in an email. He declined further comment 'at this time.'

通用汽车发言人周日在电子邮件中说，我们正在就萨博的方方面面进行磋商，我们会宣布任何进一步的进展。他拒绝“此时”进行进一步的置评。

The new deal between Beijing Auto and GM was put together over the course of about two weeks after Koenigsegg pulled out, the person with knowledge of the agreement said.

上述了解协议的人士说，在柯尼塞格退出之后，北汽与通用汽车之间新交易在约两周的时间里制定完成。

The person suggested an additional agreement may still be squeezed out of the continuing discussions, which are taking place near Saab's production hub in Trollhattan, Sweden. The person said Beijing Auto President Wang Dazong is there leading the team from Beijing and is 'still exploring ways to reach further deals for cooperation.' The person declined to elaborate.

这位知情人士指出，仍在进行中的讨论依然可能再产生一份协议；谈判在萨博位于瑞典特罗尔海坦市(Trollhattan)的生产基地附近进行。此人说，北汽总经理汪大总在那里率队来自北京的小组，仍在探索达成进一步合作交易的途径。此人拒绝提供细节。

One element of this weekend's deal that couldn't be learned is whether it will allow Beijing Auto to use the Saab name in China or elsewhere. It wasn't immediately clear whether Mr. Wang in the talks is trying to acquire a right to use the Saab name, or the rest of Saab's assets.

有关上周末的交易有一点尚不可知，那就是交易是否将允许北汽在中国或其他地方使用萨博的品牌。汪大总是否试图在谈判中获得使用萨博品牌或萨博剩余资产的权利，这一点尚不清楚。

Some reports have said the partial sale of Saab technology and other assets could lead to the end of Saab, with its other assets, including its headquarters, liquidated. That outcome, the reports have said, could threaten at least 3,000 Saab jobs in Sweden.

一些报导说，萨博部分技术和其他资产的出售可能会导致萨博的终结，包括萨博总部在内的其他资产会被清算。报导说，这样的结果可能会威胁到萨博在瑞典的至少3,000个工作岗位。

Beijing Auto was China's first auto maker to team up with a foreign counterpart, when it partnered 25 years ago with then-American Motors Corp. to produce and sell Jeeps in China. But it has failed to develop a strong brand of its own, even as rivals such as Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. have roared ahead.

北汽是中国第一家与外国厂商合作的汽车生产商；25年前，该公司与当时的美国汽车公司(American Motors Corp.)开始在中国合作生产和销售吉普(Jeep)汽车。不过北汽却没能打造出一个强大的自有品牌，而上海汽车工业（集团）总公司等竞争对手纷纷抢到了前头。

Beijing Auto's main businesses now are joint ventures with Hyundai Motor Co. and Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz unit, as well as a heavy-truck producer called Foton. Beijing Auto's own brand is a minor competitor in China's domestic market, with only a small lineup of aging sport-utility vehicles.

北汽现在的主要业务是与现代汽车(Hyundai Motor Co.)以及戴姆勒公司(Daimler AG)旗下奔驰(Mercedes-Benz)子公司的合资企业，还有重型卡车生产商福田。北汽的自有品牌在中国国内市场并非主要竞争者，汽车产品的阵容只有很少几款老旧的SUV。

Mr. Wang, in an earlier interview with The Wall Street Journal, has said that developing a strong brand would require foreign technology and know-how, which is best achieved by buying into a troubled overseas auto maker. He cited Shanghai Auto's development of its Roewe brand using technology from MG Rover.

汪大总此前在接受《华尔街日报》采访时说，打造一个强大的品牌需要外国技术和经验，获取这些的最佳途径是收购一家陷入困境的海外汽车厂商。他援引了上海汽车利用MG罗孚汽车集团(MG Rover)的技术开发出自己的荣威(Roewe)品牌的例子。

Norihiko Shirouzu

http://cn.wsj.com/gb/20091214/bch084755.asp