Spanish trials bike manufacturer Gas Gas has filed for insolvency in the Spanish courts.
As reported by MotoWEEK and International Dealer News in February, the company had hit financial trouble and suspended production, but expected that it would be able to raise the necessary investment to enable it to continue trading.
However, although there are still said to be parties in negotiations to acquire the business as a "going concern", to date no investor has agreed a deal, and with a deal with the shareholders falling through at the last minute, a May 18th bankruptcy filing could result in a court appointed trustee taking control of the company in the coming weeks.
If no deal can be agreed, then the company will be sold. Gas Gas is thought to have debts of some €30 million. In January Gas Gas Motos Chairman Yariv Gilat said the company had been working on a restructuring plan that included new shareholder investment to support the company's growth, but that the banks had "delayed their answer" and forced the company to "start some legal actions in order to protect the company and push the process forward".
In 2014 the Catalan government agreed to provide Gas Gas with €2 million to fund the plan, including acquisition of new technology to improve their two and four stroke engine production. That decision followed a €4 million investment by an international consortium in 2013.
Last year it was announced that Gas Gas would merge with Ossa and re-launch that brand, having previously agreed to share production facilities and personnel. Ossa was re-launched in 2009, three decades after its closure, and were believed to be producing around 800 trials motorbikes.
Gas Gas itself was founded in 1985, so was hoping to celebrate its 30th anniversary this year. It is estimated that the company was producing some 9,000 bikes per year as recently as 2012/13, of which 95% were exported, 37 percent outside Europe. It is said that the company was providing jobs for 500 direct and indirect workers.
Early last year Gas Gas reached an agreement with Moto Italia s.r.l., the former Husqvarna Motorcycles s.r.l, to acquire their two and four stroke engine technology, a deal that had the approval of the Austrian KTM group, who acquired the Husqvarna Motorcycles brand in early 2013.
