93snake
03-23-2010, 01:49 PM
The Wall Street Journal, Mar-23-2010 – Ford Motor Co. is on track to sell its Volvo car unit to a Chinese auto maker by the end of March as planned, a person familiar with the matter said late Monday.
Last week, China's Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co. Chairman Li Shufu told The Wall Street Journal that he continues to expect to complete Geely's effort to acquire Volvo but indicated the talks have hit a snag because of unspecified problems at Ford.
Mr. Li said the auto maker has "done everything [it] can to prepare for the deal in accordance with the framework agreement" the two auto makers signed in December to allow Geely to acquire Ford's Swedish brand. The ball is now in Ford's court, he indicated.
A person familiar with the recent negotiations said Monday that "the talks were never snagged to the point where people walked away from the table. In any of these types of deals, you come down the final stretch; it's a complex and difficult process." The person said a last-minute snag could hold up the deal, but Ford did not expect one to emerge as a major stumbling block.
Geely, one of China's biggest privately owned auto makers, is financing a roughly $2 billon bid for Volvo with a combination of cash, bank loans and funds from a small number of investors.
Last week, China's Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co. Chairman Li Shufu told The Wall Street Journal that he continues to expect to complete Geely's effort to acquire Volvo but indicated the talks have hit a snag because of unspecified problems at Ford.
Mr. Li said the auto maker has "done everything [it] can to prepare for the deal in accordance with the framework agreement" the two auto makers signed in December to allow Geely to acquire Ford's Swedish brand. The ball is now in Ford's court, he indicated.
A person familiar with the recent negotiations said Monday that "the talks were never snagged to the point where people walked away from the table. In any of these types of deals, you come down the final stretch; it's a complex and difficult process." The person said a last-minute snag could hold up the deal, but Ford did not expect one to emerge as a major stumbling block.
Geely, one of China's biggest privately owned auto makers, is financing a roughly $2 billon bid for Volvo with a combination of cash, bank loans and funds from a small number of investors.