The production line at Saab's Trollhattan plant has come to a screeching halt today, following allegations from the Swedish Customs agency that the automaker has unpaid customs duties, reports say. Swedish authorities have put a hold on shipments to and from the recently bankrupted automaker, leaving the Trollhattan plant short of some crucial parts needed for vehicles currently being assembled.
Saab's production manager Gunnar Brunius, speaking with news agency TT has confirmed that production has ceased after the plant ran out of parts needed to build its vehicles. Still, Brunius said that he expects production to commence tomorrow as the issue is likely to be resolved over the course of the evening.
Swedish Customs representative Hans Ohlsson told reporters that Saab owes a "considerable" amount of money in back customs duties and that all goods arriving at Saab from outside of the European Union would be held until the duties are paid. Saab will either have to pay the owed duties itself to resume operations, or find an agency that is willing to pay the debt.
"They would have to pay all of Saab's credit," said Ohlsson. "Saab is not getting a penny of credit from us."
How soon Saab is able to return to production is anyone's guess -- we'd suspect it may be a bit more difficult than Brunius is letting on. Especially since Saab is, you know, bankrupt and all.