General Motors commented Monday night on the $3 billion lawsuit filed against it by Dutch automaker Spyker. The lawsuit centers around the bankruptcy of Saab, a former GM subsidiary and current Spyker subsidiary that filed for bankruptcy in December 2011.
"Here's our response to the Spyker lawsuit: We have reviewed the complaint, and it is completely without merit. We will vigorously defend the company against these baseless allegations," Dave Roman, GM's director of financial communications, said in an email Monday night to the International Business Times, the global business website.
GM purchased Saab in 2000, having been a major shareholder in the Swedish car brand since 1989. While Saab was known for producing highly advanced cars, it never managed to be more of a niche brand. GM found it unprofitable, and sold it to Spyker in 2010. Spyker, which produces costly, high-performance sports cars, claims that it found the financial backers necessary to make Saab a going concern.
The investors included the Chinese car companies Zheijiang Youngman Lotus Automobile Company and Pang Da Automobile Trade Company Ltd, who reportedly had an eye toward manufacturing Saabs in China. Spyker's lawsuit claims that GM, which regards China as an increasingly vital market for its own vehicles, refused to honor an agreement to continue supplying Saab with parts and with the 9-4X SUV through 2014.
Without these, the deal fell apart, says Spyker.
The Dutch company says that the suit was filed in the Eastern District Court of Michigan on Monday, August 6 and that GM was served with the papers the following day. GM must respond by August 28.
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