Zhejiang Geely Holding Group is doing what it can to conclude the acquisition of Ford Motor Co.’s Volvo unit in early 2010, according to Reuters who declined to name its sources.

In fact, Geely has hired consultants for restructuring and integration. Roland Berger Strategy Consultants, which is based in Germany, is reportedly tasked to launch a 100-day internal review and restructuring to improve Geely operations with a focus on sales of Geely’s self-branded cars in China. Another source is in agreement and tells Reuters that there are “no more hurdles” to the Volvo deal, which is expected to be completed before Chinese New Year (February 14). As soon as the deal is done, Geely will launch integration. Geely has yet to comment on this report.

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Things are looking even better for Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, the parent of Geely Automobile, to be given the right to acquire Ford Motor Co.’s Volvo car brand. Members of Geely’s management team are in Sweden this week to discuss their bid, according to a Europe-based spokesman for Geely.

Zhejiang was named last week by Ford as being the preferred bidder. The meeting will take place in Gothenburg and Stockholm this week and will be attended by Ford and Volvo officials, Volvo unions and Swedish government officials. Among the issues that would have to resolved is the transfer of Volvo’s intellectual property rights. A Ford spokesman said that the company remains confident in its ability to protect its secrets because it overcame similar issues during the 2008 sale of Jaguar and Land Rover to Tata Motors Ltd. An insider source had said that Ford’s decision to name Geely as a preferred bidder indicates that considerable progress has been made at this point.

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More detailed negotiations will soon start between Ford Motor Co. and Chinese automaker Geely Group Holding Co. over the bidding to purchase Volvo Car Corp. In a statement, Ford Chief Financial Officer Lewis Booth, said that Geely, its preferred bidder, has the potential to be a responsible future owner of Volvo. Booth expects that Geely will be able to take the business forward while preserving its core values and independence. Ford said if ever a sale will come to pass, the carmaker does not want to retain shareholding in Volvo; however, it will continue to work with the automaker in many areas.

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Despite a report by Wall Street Journal that Ford Motor Co. is currently analyzing Geely Automotive’s bid to purchase Volvo, CEO Alan Mulally would only state that Ford’s plans for the sale of Volvo are “progressing.” Last Friday, Mulally was in Chongqing, China, at a ground-breaking ceremony for a new 150,000-unit factory that will increase Ford’s production capacity in the country to 600,000 by 2012.

He declined to say which companies Ford has been talking with. On the other hand, Geely Automotive has been upfront in saying that its parent company wishes to buy the Swedish brand. The Wall Street Journal reported that Ford is still studying Geely’s bid to acquire 100% of Volvo for about $2.5 billion. It is widely believed that Geely is leading the pack of interested parties that want to buy Volvo from Ford.

Tags:car news, geely volvo sale, volvo sale, volvo sale news
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Chinese manufacturer Geely is inching its way to take over Volvo from Ford and a report in the Wall Street Journal is saying that in fact, it has emerged as the leading contender. Geely’s bid is estimated to be worth $2.5 billion, a bid that Ford and outsiders consider much higher than was expected for Volvo.

In the past few years, Volvo was reported to have lost more than $1bn. While it seems that the proposal is too good to be true, there is one sticking point. Geely is asking to take on only Volvo’s assets, such as its safety technology and factories. Geely does not want to be involved in any post-Ford restructuring process, taking on pension debt or unwanted inventory. Considered crucial to the deal is Volvo’s technology. Ford is believed to be hesitating since the brand would then be a rival in Europe and Asia. Last August, Ford’s chief financial officer Lewis Booth said that Ford expects “a pretty long process” due to the environment. He explained that there is no explicit timetable and that talks are ongoing with interested parties. Meanwhile, Ford CEO Alan Mulally wasn’t keen on sharing details. The most that he could say was that talks to sell Volvo were progressing.

Tags:car news, geely volvo sale, geely volvo takeover, Volvo, volvo sale, volvo takeover
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