The assets of bankrupt automaker Fisker Automotive are scheduled to be transferred to Hybrid Technology LLC, which bought the automaker’s outstanding $168 million DOE loan for $25 million in October. However, just days before a hearing in which a judge will decide whether to give final approval to the deal, Chinese auto parts giant Wanxiang has submitted a rival bid.

As reported by Philadelphia news outlet WHYY, Wanxiang is offering to pay $24.7 million and assume some of Fisker’s liabilities.

Wanxiang has been interested in Fisker for some time. Last January, it purchased A123, Fisker’s bankrupt battery supplier, and in May, it teamed up with VL Automotive, a boutique automaker led by automotive superstar Bob Lutz to make an offer for Fisker.

Obviously, whoever buys Fisker will try to restart production of the Karma. So far, Hybrid Technology has, at least publicly, been rather vague about its plans, saying only that the purchase of the government loan was a first step toward restarting production. “As we continue to examine Fisker’s opportunities, we will be making decisions about the structure and footprint of the new business,” said spokeswoman Caroline Langdale.

In court documents, Wanxiang mentions the hypothetical new Fisker model called the Atlantic, and proposes restarting Karma production at Valmet in Finland, and later moving it to VL Automotive’s manufacturing facility in Michigan.

Source: AutoBlog Green, WHYY