/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCREUR_Public/000607.mbx      T R O U B L E D   C O M P A N Y   R E P O R T E R     

                       E U R O P E

          Wednesday, June 7, 2000, Vol. 1, No. 22


                       Headlines

B U L G A R I A

FIRST PRIVATE BANK: Iorset Holding to Buy Insolvent Bank


N E T H E R L A N D S

BAAN CO.: Moody's Places Ratings On Review


R U S S I A

UNIFIED ENERGY: Abandons Restructuring Plan
VARYEGANNEFTEGAZ: Under Bankruptcy Proceeding


U N I T E D   K I N G D O M

FIRST NATIONAL MAINTENANCE: Notice of Creditors' Meeting
ADAM & EVE: Notice of Creditors' Meeting
ALPADALE LTD: Notice of Creditors' Meeting
BTC STEELS: Notice of Creditors' Meeting
BRITISH NUCLEAR: Is Now Technically Bankrupt

BRITTEN-NORMAN: Notice of Liquidation Proceedings
CARRISWAY: Notice of Receivership Proceedings
CONTINENTAL IMPORTS: Notice of Receivership Proceeding
FACE 2 FACE: Notice of Receivership Proceedings
FOSTER & CROSS: Notice of Administration Proceedings

HAMAR: Notice of Receivership Proceedings
JACQUET WESTON: Notice of Liquidation Proceedings
NATIONWIDE CHILDCARE: Notice of Liquidation Proceedings
NET ONLINE: Notice of Liquidation Proceedings
PROCESS CONTROL & AUTOMATION: Notice of Receivership Proceedings

PROCESS CONTROL & DRIVES: Notice of Receivership Proceedings
RIPIT DIGITAL: Notice of Liquidation Proceedings
TOM WRATHALL: Notice of Receivership Proceedings

===============
B U L G A R I A
===============

FIRST PRIVATE BANK: Iorset Holding to Buy Insolvent Bank
--------------------------------------------------------
SOFIA, Jun 5, 2000 -- (Reuters) Bulgaria's biggest state owned
bank Bulbank lent 15 million levs ($7.27 million) to Bulgaria's
company Iorset Holding to buy the insolvent First Private Bank.
Last month Iorset bought the assets of First Private Bank from
the state for 14.82 million levs.


=====================
N E T H E R L A N D S
=====================

BAAN CO.: Moody's Places Ratings On Review
-------------------------------------------
Moody's Investors Service has placed the ratings for Baan Company
N.V. (Caa2 for subordinated notes, B3 issuer rating) on review
for possible upgrade following Invensys plc's bid for the
company. The rating review will focus on the strategic benefits
for Invensys from the integration of Baan's software activities,
and the degree of financial support that Invensys may be prepared
to extend to Baan and its financial obligations. The long-term
and short-term debt ratings of Invensys at A2 and Prime-1
respectively are currently under review for a possible downgrade.
The rating review was triggered by the proposed acquisition of
Baan.

The convertible subordinated Note indenture of Baan includes a
put option for the Noteholders in the case of a change of control
in addition to obliging any acquiror of Baan to expressly assume
payment of principal and interest on the notes. Moody's will
reflect these obligations in the rating of the Notes upon closing
of the transaction.

Ratings on review for potential upgrade are the Caa2 for the
convertible subordinated notes of Baan N.V. and the B3 issuer and
senior implied ratings for the company.

Baan Company N.V. with dual headquarters in Barneveld, the
Netherlands, and Herndon, Virginia, is a global provider of
enterprise business solutions with revenues of about $635 million
in 1999.

Invensys plc, headquartered in London, England, is a global
electronics and engineering company created by the merger of BTR
plc and Siebe plc in February 1999. It operates globally through
four divisions - Intelligent Automation, Industrial Drive
Systems, Power Systems and Controls and generated a turnover of
approximately GBP 6.9 billion in 1999.


===========
R U S S I A
===========

UNIFIED ENERGY: Abandons Restructuring Plan
-------------------------------------------
St. Petersburg Times   June 6, 2000

MOSCOW - Stunned by a change in investor sentiment that has wiped
some $2.5 billion off the value of his firm in recent weeks,
Unified Energy Systems chief executive Anatoly Chubais has been
forced to abandon parts of the ambitious restructuring plan he
announced earlier this year.

The plan - which calls for generating units to be split off from
UES subsidiaries into separate companies and then sold off - has
run into savage opposition from minority investors who have often
been Chubais' most fervent supporters.

"Every investor I know is against the plan," said William
Browder, manager of the $450 million Hermitage Fund.

"He [Chubais] is not acting like an owner of the company or the
representative of its shareholders," said Browder at the
Hermitage Fund. "If he were, he would not be selling any assets
at such a low valuation."

As minority investors dump shares, UES stock has plummeted 30.3
percent in the past two months, down from 21.1 cents a share on
March 24 to 14.7 cents a share as of Monday's close. At the
height of investor disenchantment, on May 24, it fell as low as
12.15 cents.

UES has sunk further than a bearish local market, which saw the
RTS index down 17.6 percent to 200.95 over the same period. The
Moscow Times index of 50 leading shares dropped 16.25 percent to
158.73.

Chubais has rushed to mend fences with foreign shareholders.

"Every violation of shareholder rights will be treated as
betrayal of company interests," Chubais told an informal workshop
held last week to bring together top UES management, government
officials and several representatives of foreign investors,
according to company officials.

The original plan to create an independent company for every
generation unit is no longer under consideration, Chubais said.

Even after his assurances, minority shareholders and some energy
company managers are opposing the plan.

"UES' proposal was to sell the generating units," said Leonid
Peshkov, a department head with regional energy firm
Samaraenergo, speaking in a telephone interview from Samara. "But
so far UES has failed to explain to us why regional power
companies should be broken up."

The plan that has caused such uproar was pushed by UES as a means
of solving the energy company's chronic debt problems through a
debt swap that would separate the generating units from the
distribution units. UES - which owns more than 50 percent in all
but a handful of the country's 80 or so energy companies and has
full control of the national power grid - would get the
distribution units. Meanwhile, the generating units would be
bought by outside investors.

Because these buyers are likely to be regional, or even national,
industrial giants - either fuel suppliers or industrial giants
that are major energy consumers - fears have been expressed that
the scheme will end up being comparable to the loans-for-shares
scheme that Chubais helped run in the mid-1990s, when he was in
charge of the nation's privatization program.

Samaraenergo's Peshkov said that if the sales takes place as
planned, then power generating units will go to Samaraenergo's
customers, primarily automotive giant AvtoVAZ and the local oil
companies, first of all Yukos, the major oil operator in the
Samara region.

In an opinion piece last month, The Wall Street Journal's Paul
Hofheinz explicitly compared the current plan to the notorious
loans-for-shares scheme - which saw major stakes in oil firms and
other immensely valuable assets parceled out to insiders for
loans worth much less than the shares involved.

"The oddest thing about the plan was its strange whiff of
familiarity," Hofheinz wrote. "On paper, the proposal to slice
the company in two and sell off the regional power generators
makes a lot of sense ... But there is plenty of scope for
corruption tucked away behind the sale of those power generators,
as several of the company's minority shareholders have also noted
publicly. And there is not a person on this planet who doesn't
worry that the plan won't go the same way as the privatization
program [Chubais] led some eight years ago."

The draft proposal approved by the board two months ago is now
being revised, Chubais said, according to investor
representatives who attended the workshop.

UES shares some of the blame for the regional energy companies'
bulging debts, which have swelled as UES almost doubled
transmission charges during the past 10 months. With oil
suppliers also raising fuel prices in the wake of last year's
rally on international markets, UES subsidiary companies were hit
with a ferocious rise in costs. Government regulation has made it
extremely difficult for the energy companies to pass on this
increase to their customers, hence the companies' growing debts.

The state also insists that these companies keep supplying power
to bankrupt - or merely cash-poor - strategic enterprises even
when they refuse to pay their debts.

As long as these factors remain, any power industry assets will
be undervalued, meaning that asset sales would be little better
than asset striping, critics have alleged.

"We maintain our negative view towards the utilities sector
restructuring process," says Natalya Baranova, power analyst with
CentreInvest. "A large part of power assets in the regions could
be handed to UES and fuel suppliers."

There would be plenty of scope for opportunistic managers and
regional elites to grab assets at well below their value, said
Ivan Lazarko, head of NAUFOR, a shareholder rights group, and a
member of the UES board.

"Asset sales will be detrimental to shareholders," Lazarko said
in a telephone interview. "Regional elites and top managers could
get them for peanuts."

Chubais has addressed such concerns by saying that asset sales
will not take place as long as valuations remain low. Consultants
will be hired to advise the board, he added.

However, some outside investors have also said they fear that
Chubais' late face-saving attempts could be an attempt to
sidestep opposition at the annual shareholder meeting scheduled
for June 30. The restructuring proposals are not on the agenda
for the meeting.


VARYEGANNEFTEGAZ: Under Bankruptcy Proceeding
-------------------------------------------
RusData DiaLine- BizEkon News    June 05, 2000

Bankruptcy proceedings against Varyeganneftegaz were instituted
as early as April 1999 with Sidanko managers having had ample
opportunities to prevent the subsidiary from being put up for
sale by creditors.

Aliyans Group, which has been short of oil mining assets of its
own, simply took advantage of the occasion to bid for the
enterprise. Group experts offered consulting services to the
enterprise on a request from the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Area
administration, a shareholder of Aliyans.

This February, Aliyans officials were involved in talks with
Sidanko shareholders to include BP Amoco which were prepared in
principle at the time to put up Varyeganneftegaz for sale.

Meanwhile, in March, Sidanko management notified Aliyans that
company shareholders had opposed the sale of Varyeganneftegaz
with the message having failed to specify any reasons for the
sudden rejection.

Varyeganneft and Varyeganneftegaz used to be a single production
entity in the past. And their reintegration is believed by
Aliyans experts to prove instrumental in significantly enhancing
the efficiency of their operation. This in turn is bound to
render the operation of Khabarovsk oil refinery and relevant
local oil products supply entities more efficient and stable. So,
if Aliyans Group wins tenders for Varyeganneftegaz, it is going
to be primarily involved as strategic investor in the enterprise.

Estimates suggest that it is quite feasible to increase
Varyeganneftegaz annual product to 3-4 million tons. However, the
effort will take investments of an estimated USD 500 million to
be made in the 20 years ahead in the project. Varyeganneftegaz
has to redeem USD 120 million of the USD 170 million credit
extended by IBRD in August 1993.


===========================
U N I T E D   K I N G D O M
===========================

FIRST NATIONAL MAINTENANCE: Notice of Creditors' Meeting
--------------------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: 1st National Maintenance Ltd
IA 1986 Section: 98
Creditors Meeting Time: 10.15 am
Meeting date: 12/06/00
Meeting address: The Old Exchange 234 Southchurch Road
Meeting City Code: Southend-on-Sea SS1 2EG
Authorised by: M C Ricks Director 15/05/00
Last day for proxy: 09/06/00
Proxy address: The Old Exchange 234 Southchurch Road Southend-on-
Sea           SS1 2EG
Liquidators: Mark R Fry Firm Name: Begbies Traynor


ADAM & EVE: Notice of Creditors' Meeting
-------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: Adam & Eve (Sherwood Forest) Ltd
IA 1986 Section: 98
Creditors Meeting Time: 10.30 am
Meeting date: 09/06/00
Meeting address: 20 Cornhill
Meeting City Code: Lincoln LN5 7HB
Authorised by: A S Hermanns Director
Last day for proxy: 08/06/00
Proxy address: Daisyfield Business Centre Appleby Street
Blackburn Liquidators:
Firm Name: White & Co
Address: 20 Cornhill Lincoln LN5 7HB



ALPADALE LTD: Notice of Creditors' Meeting
-------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: Alpadale Ltd
IA 1986 Section: 98 Creditors
Meeting Time: 12.00 pm
Meeting date: 12/06/00
Meeting address: Brazennose House West Brazennose Street
Meeting City Code: Manchester M2 5FE
Authorised by: S A K Wood Director
Last day for proxy: 09/06/00
Proxy address: Brazennose House West Brazennose Street Manchester
M2 5FE
Liquidators: Geoffrey M Weisgard
Firm Name: Mitchell Charlesworth
Address: Brazennose House West Brazennose Street Manchester M2
5FE


BTC STEELS: Notice of Creditors' Meeting
-------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: BTC Steels Ltd
IA 1986 Section: 98 Creditors
Meeting Time: 11.00 am
Meeting date: 12/06/00
Meeting address: 141 Great Charles Street
Meeting City Code: Birmingham B3 3LG
Authorised by: T Lowe Director 23/05/00
Last day for proxy: 09/06/00
Proxy address: 141 Great Charles Street Birmingham B3 3LG
Liquidators: Martin T Coyne
Firm Name: Poppleton & Appleby
Address: 141 Great Charles Street Birmingham B3 3LG


BRITISH NUCLEAR: Is Now Technically Bankrupt
-------------------------------------------
The Irish Times     June 5, 2000

British Nuclear Fuels Ltd (BNFL) is now technically bankrupt and
unlikely ever to be privatised, according to the Fianna Fail
Leinster MEP, Mr Jim Fitzsimons. Mr Fitzsimons, a member of the
European Parliament's environment committee, said that a
"(pounds) 9 billion hole" in liabilities had been identified
which was believed to stem from the company's clean-up of its
Sellafield plant.

BNFL's current liabilities stood at (pounds) 27 billion sterling,
and additional costs of (pounds) 9 billion would leave it with
long-term liabilities of (pounds) 36 billion which "in reality,
will mean that BNFL is technically bankrupt".  


BRITTEN-NORMAN: Notice of Liquidation Proceedings
-------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: Britten-Norman Ltd
Previous Name: Pilatus Britten-Norman Ltd
Company No: 1374061
Com. Business: Manufacture Light Aircraft
Appointed on: 19/05/00
Type: Creditors
Appointed by: Creditors and Members
Liquidators: David Rubin IPno: 2591 Lee Manning 6477
Firm Name: David Rubin & Co
Address: Pearl Assurance House 319 Ballards Lane
City Postcode: London N12 8LY


CARRISWAY: Notice of Receivership Proceedings
-------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: Carrisway Ltd
Company No: 3188489
Com. Business: Public House/Restaurants
Trading Name: The Waterside & The Mackenzie
Trade clasif.: 48
Appointed on: 19/05/00
Appointed by: Wolves & Dudley Breweries
Type: Administrative Receivers: David Wilton IPno: 5708, Tim
Walsh 8371 Firm Name: PricewaterhouseCoopers
Address: 8 Princes Parade St Nicholas Place
City Postcode: Liverpool L3 1QJ


CONTINENTAL IMPORTS: Notice of Receivership Proceeding
-------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: Continental Imports (Blackpool) Ltd
Company No: 3385252
Com. Business: Import/Wholesale
Trade clasif.: 15
Appointed on: 22/05/00
Appointed by: Riggs Bank Europe Ltd
Type: Administrative
Receivers: Nicholas A Smith IPno: 8853, Michael Horrocks 8026
Firm Name: PricewaterhouseCoopers
Address: 101 Barbirolli Square
City Postcode: Manchester M2 3PW


FACE 2 FACE: Notice of Receivership Proceedings
-------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: Face Two face Promotions Ltd
Company No: SC
Trading Name: Strawberry Fields Nightclub
Appointed on: 19/05/00
Appointed by: Type: Administrative
Receivers: Kenneth R Craig IPno: 8584, Thomas C MacLennan 8209
Firm Name: Scott Oswald
Address: 41 St Vincent Place
City Postcode: Glasgow G1 2ER


FOSTER & CROSS: Notice of Administration Proceedings
-------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: Foster & Cross Ltd
Com. Business: Lift Manufacture/Install
Appointed on: 22/05/00
Type: Administration Order
Administrators: G Irwin IPno: 8753
Firm Name: Irwin & Co
Address: 2 Duke Street Sutton Coldfield
City Postcode: Birmingham B72 1RJ


HAMAR: Notice of Receivership Proceedings
-------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: Hamar Ltd
Company No: 3005906
Com. Business: Retail Mobility Equipment
Trading Name: Comfort AIDS
Trade clasif.: 22
Appointed on: 19/05/00
Appointed by: Trade Winds Commercial
Type: Administrative
Receivers: David W Darrell IPno: 8987,
Firm Name: Sochalls Address: 9 Wimpole Street
City Postcode: London W1M 8LB


JACQUET WESTON: Notice of Liquidation Proceedings
-------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: Jacquet Weston Plant Ltd
Company No: 1133212
Com. Business: Electro-Plating Plant Manufacturers
Appointed on: 19/05/00
Type: Creditors
Appointed by: Creditors
Liquidators: Martin A Shaw IPno: 6334 Edwin J Kirkwood 8096
Firm Name: BKR Haines Watts
Address: Sterling House Maple Court Maple Road
City Postcode: Barnsley S75 3DP


NATIONWIDE CHILDCARE: Notice of Liquidation Proceedings
-------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: Nationwide Childcare Organisation Ltd
Company No: 2670001
Com. Business: Provision of Child Care Services
Appointed on: 19/05/00
Type: Creditors
Appointed by: Creditors and Members
Liquidators: James R Tickell IPno: 8125 David J Waterhouse 5732
Firm Name: PricewaterhouseCoopers
Address: Savannah House 3 Ocean Way Ocean Village
City Postcode: Southampton SO14 3TJ


NET ONLINE: Notice of Liquidation Proceedings
-------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: Net Online Ltd
Company No: 3087742
Com. Business: Internet Provider
Appointed on: 19/05/00
Type: Creditors
Appointed by: Creditors and Members
Liquidators: Kikis Kallis IPno: 4692
Firm Name: Kallis & Co
Address: Mountview Court 1148 High Road Whetstone
City Postcode: London N20 0RA


PROCESS CONTROL & AUTOMATION: Notice of Receivership Proceedings
-------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: Process Control & Automation Ltd
Company No: 2387192
Com. Business: Design/Mauf/Install Elec Cont Sys
Trade clasif.: 11
Appointed on: 22/05/00
Appointed by: HCBS Bank Plc
Type: Administrative
Receivers: Robert H Kelly IPno: 8582, William S Martin 5514
Firm Name: Ernst & Young
Address: Cloth Hall Court 14 King Street
City Postcode: Leeds LS1 2JN


PROCESS CONTROL & DRIVES: Notice of Receivership Proceedings
-------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: Process Control & Drives Ltd
Company No: 2596866
Com. Business: Distributor
Trade clasif.: 15
Appointed on: 22/05/00
Appointed by: HCBS Bank Plc
Type: Administrative
Receivers: Robert H Kelly IPno: 8582, William S Martin 5514
Firm Name: Ernst & Young
Address: Cloth Hall Court 14 King Street
City Postcode: Leeds LS1 2JN


RIPIT DIGITAL: Notice of Liquidation Proceedings
-------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: Ripit Digital Printing Ltd
Company No: 3229497
Com. Business: Digital Printing
Appointed on: 19/05/00
Type: Creditors
Appointed by: Creditors and Members
Liquidators: John P Bell IPno: 8608
Firm Name: Clarke Bell
Address: Regency Court 62-66 Deansgate
City Postcode: Manchester M3 2EN


TOM WRATHALL: Notice of Receivership Proceedings
-------------------------------------------
Insolvency UK

Company Name: Tom Wrathall & Sons Ltd
Company No: 1905742
Com. Business: Motor Dealership
Trade clasif.: 19
Appointed on: 19/05/00
Appointed by: National Westminster
Type: Administrative
Receivers: G C Smith IPno: 6335, K Hinds 6745
Firm Name: RSM Robson Rhodes
Address: Colwyn Chambers 19 York Street
City Postcode: Manchester M2 3BA



S U B S C R I P T I O N   I N F O R M A T I O N

Troubled Company Reporter Europe is a daily newsletter co-
published by Bankruptcy Creditors' Service, Inc., Trenton, NJ,
and Beard Group, Inc., Washington, DC.  Peter A. Chapman and
Sharon Cuarto, Editors.

Copyright 2000.  All rights reserved.  ISSN 1529-2754.

This material is copyrighted and any commercial use, resale or
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