STOCKHOLM, Sept 19 | Mon Sep 19, 2011 3:01am EDT
STOCKHOLM, Sept 19 (Reuters) - Struggling car maker Saab plans to use money recently promised by a Chinese investor to pay delayed wages and some unpaid bills to stave off bankruptcy if it is not given protection from creditors, daily Dagens Industri wrote on Monday.
Last week, two of Saab's own unions and a supplier asked a court to declare Saab bankrupt after the carmaker's application for protection from creditors was turned down.
A ruling on whether Saab can appeal the lower court ruling could come as early as Monday.
The bankruptcy applications came despite Saab agreeing 70 million euros ($96.5 million) in bridge financing with the help of a guarantee from China's Zhejiang Youngman Lotus Automobile, which hopes to become a shareholder in Saab.
"Three hundred and twenty million crowns will cover three months wages until Youngman and Pangda can invest the 2.2 billion Swedish crowns ($331 million) they have agreed on, if China's authorities approve it," the paper quoted a well informed source saying.
If Saab can pay its wages, unions have said they would withdraw their bankruptcy applications.
The source said that the rest of the money would be offered to suppliers, who are owed around 1.3 billion crowns.
The source said, however, that Youngman would not hand over the money until it had a guarantee from Saab that suppliers would not force it into bankruptcy.
A Saab spokeswoman declined to comment.
Production at Saab has been more or less at a standstill since April when unpaid suppliers pulled the plug on deliveries.
Saab has been scrambling for funds ever since, but was forced to apply for protection from creditors earlier this month.
The court rejected the application, but Saab has asked for the right to a fresh hearing, pointing among other things to the new financing.
Saab hopes creditor protection will allow it to survive until China's authorities okay a 245 million euro investment by car firms Youngman and Pangda .
($1 = 6.645 Swedish Kronas) ($1 = 0.725 Euros) (Reporting by Simon Johnson. Editing by Jane Merriman)
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