#debt

Anyone close to the industry would probably agree that Tesla, of all the small EV makers, is making the biggest strides toward leaving its start-up status behind.

As a result, Italy’s Polizia launched a major operation across Milan in late January, setting roadblocks to halt high-end luxury vehicle drivers. When drivers hand over license and registration, their personal information will be passed on to the national tax agency to determine whether the owner of the car has declared accurate income and if the proper amount of income taxes has been paid.

Sweden’s debt agency is claiming they have successfully investigated a handful of Saab bank accounts with some success. On Friday, the agency uncovered $796,291 which is enough to cover debts owed to the first four companies waiting for payment.

”We’ve just begun by looking at what kind of bank accounts they have and what kind of collateral there might be” in the process that started Wednesday, Tommy Barkman, a case worker at the state agency, explained in a telephone interview with Automotive News.

Swedish Automobile, owner of financially-stricken Saab, is being pressured by European suppliers to declare bankruptcy, hoping the threat will pressure the automaker to pay back debts.

The Chrysler Group has repaid it outstanding debt worth $7.6 billion in loans to the U.S and Canadian governments. This ends nearly two years of public ownership of the third largest U.S automaker.

Saab parent company Spyker held talks with parts suppliers Thursday, in a bid to restart production that has been halted over a dispute regarding unpaid bills.

Ford Motor Company has announced huge strides in its efforts to become economically viable. And whether through magic or some sort of wacky accounting that involves proper management of finances, it has done this without federal government aid (aka your tax dollars).

Today Ford announced that is has reduced its $25.9 billion debt by more than a third with a payment of $9.9 billion. The payment was made in 2.4 billion in cash as well as 468 million shares of Ford Common stock.

Reducing the company’s debt so significantly puts FoMoCo in a much-improved financial situation moving forward. This one-time payment will reduce Ford’s annual interest payments by $500 million.

“By substantially reducing our debt, Ford is taking another step toward creating an exciting, viable enterprise,” said Ford President and CEO Alan Mulally. “As with our recent agreements with the UAW, Ford continues to lead the industry in taking the decisive actions necessary to weather the current downturn and deliver long-term profitable growth.”

Official release after the jump: