The Swedish government Wednesday expressed disappointment over US automotive giant General Motors Corp's plans to sell Swedish subsidiary Saab while demanding Swedish state loans, dpa reported.
"What GM says is that they wash their hands of Saab, and drop it into the laps of Swedish taxpayers," Enterprise Minister Maud Olofsson said after the GM announcement overnight in Detroit.
"It is such a lot of money, and major undertaking," Olofsson told Swedish broadcaster SVT.
"I am really disappointed in GM," Olofsson said. "This is a big multinational corporation that two years ago knew that they faced an economic crisis but didn't do anything."
"The Swedish state and taxpayers will not own car plants," she added, saying she had conveyed that message during talks with GM.
Olofsson said the government's support to the vehicle-making industry consisted of three components - bank guarantees for a loan in the European Investment Bank (EIB), emergency loans and funds to a research and development company.
The R&D company aimed to utilize skills and knowledge in the vehicle-making sector, Olofsson said.
Saab chief executive Jan-Ake Jonsson was more optimistic, telling Swedish radio that "this confirms our business plan that we have worked with for some time to make Saab an independent company."
Jonsson added it was important that Saab soon gets funds to "complete the cars we are developing."
Union leaders at Saab's Trollhattan plant in south-western Sweden said they were hopeful that a solution would be found.
The US automotive giant's interest in Saab - one of Europe's smallest car makers - dates back to the early 1990s, and the concern took full control in 2000.