Billionaire Kirk Kerkorian (Left is a file photo of him), the richest man in Los Angeles, has made a 4.5-billion-dollar bid to purchase automaker Chrysler.

Kerkorian's Tracinda Corp. said in a statement on Thursday thatit "intends to build and strengthen Chrysler as an independent entity by partnering with the United Auto Workers (UAW) and senior management of Chrysler, and will offer the UAW and Chrysler management the opportunity to participate as equity partners in the transaction."

"Tracinda believes that by taking a long-term approach to solving Chrysler's problems, it can become a robust and lasting, stand-alone entity," said the statement.

In a letter to the Daimler Chrysler Supervisory Board, Tracinda officials also offered to post a 100-million-dollar deposit to ensure exclusive negotiating rights on the sale.

According to The Detroit News, other bidders for the company include Blackstone Group, Cerberus Capital Management and Magna International Inc.

Kerkorian was named by the Los Angeles Business Journal last year as the richest man in Los Angeles, with an estimated worth of 9.3 billion dollars.

Born in 1917 in Fresno, Southern California to Armenian immigrants, Kerkorian, who never attended college, made billions in investments in Las Vegas casinos, airlines, and MGM studios -- which he later sold.

He was Chrysler Corp.'s largest shareholder in the 1990s. Last year, Kerkorian sold his holdings in General Motors after a failed proposal to merge the company with Renault and Nissan Motor Co.

(Xinhua)