A surprise new player last night announced a bid for Saab in partnership with Formula One racing supremo Bernie Ecclestone, prompting the General Motors board to add at least a day to its deadline. And a new Swedish group also emerged as a prospective buyer. GM also said today that it has appointed a firm to supervise the Saab wind-down.

Luxembourg-based Genii Capital said it had been brought into the bidding process "at a late stage by advisors close to the deal" and - given the time restraints - would "aggressively work towards a successful closing of the transaction with all the relevant stakeholders of the company".

The investment group said it had "diverse investments and a strong knowledge of the automotive industry" and thought it could add value to Saab by working with other firms in which it has stakes "in the areas of energy efficient engines, OEM components and on-board IT and media technologies - including pay per listen/pay per use systems".

"Genii Capital believes that the automotive industry will see - as expected - strong developments in energy efficiency, safety systems but also in the area of on board entertainment systems including technologies that enable use on demand systems as well as innovative communications platforms such as VOIP and GPS location based services," it said.

"The group believes that Saab has a tremendous brand value in a number of key automotive markets as well as an innovative image allowing it to be at the forefront of the car companies that will be first to market with some of the above mentioned technologies."

Genii established links with Ecclestone after it last month bought a stake in the Renault Formula One team, allowing the team to remain in the sport.

Dutch sportscar make Spyker, previously rejected, also submitted a definitive, updated bid.

"The bid is being refined," Muller told AFP, declining to give details of the revised offer.

"It is the same offer we made during the weekend of December 20 (last year), but it is being completely refined following discussions" in recent weeks.

Meanwhile, Swedish media said a local group was interested in acquiring Saab Automobile.

The new group is fronted by Haakan Samuelsson, a 58-year-old Swede who quit as chief executive officer of truck maker MAN last November, and Jan Nygren, a former Social Democratic cabinet minister and ex-deputy chief executive of defence materiel group Saab, financial daily Dagens Industri said.

The newspaper said it was not known who was financing the Swedes' bid, AFP noted.

However, the paper said the group's business plan aimed for a scaled-down Saab Automobile that would build 45,000 to 50,000 cars a year, and would not require a loan from the European Investment Bank.

GM also today confirmed it has selected AlixPartners to supervise the orderly wind down of Saab, and has requested approval of the selection by the appropriate authority in Sweden.  The use of a wind down supervisor is a commonly-used process in Sweden and works in the interest of the shareholder.

The wind down process is expected to take several months, and will ensure that employees, dealers and suppliers are adequately protected, GM said.  As stated previously, Saab customers can be assured that warranties will continue to be honored and that service and spare parts will continue to be available.

GM also confirmed that it has received several proposals for Saab and is continuing to evaluate these proposals. That evaluation is 'not affected by the appointment of AlixPartners'.