03/09/2005 08:05:39 EST

Saab's CEO Resigns After Losing GM Bid
By MATTIAS KAREN
Associated Press Writer

After losing a bid to produce General Motors Corp.'s midsize cars, Saab Automobile's Chief Executive Peter Augustsson said Wednesday he will resign in April to start his own company.

Augustsson, who has led Saab since 2000, will be replaced on April 1 by Jan-Aake Jonsson, the current chief of sales and marketing for GM's Nordic region.

Augustsson's announcement came five days after GM dashed Saab's hopes that its plant in Trollhaettan would be chosen to produce future generations of GM's midsize cars in Europe. Instead, the U.S.-based auto company said an Opel plant in Ruesselsheim, Germany, will be its hub for such production.

But, GM guaranteed that the Trollhaettan plant will keep producing automobiles until 2010, including a new Cadillac BLS model aimed at the European market.

Augustsson said GM's announcement Friday provided "a fitting moment" to end his career with Saab.

"If I was going to stay, I'd have to commit for several more years," Augustsson said. "I don't feel like I can do that. I want to do something else now."

He said he plans to start a business development company, but declined to provide details.

Carl-Peter Forster, president of GM Europe, will take Augustsson's place as chairman of the board of Saab Automobile AB, the company said.

After General Motors acquired a stake in Saab Automobile in 1990, the automaker has posted profits just twice. Since 2000, when GM acquired Saab, the company has been in the red but Augustsson said, "I don't feel like I've failed."