/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCREUR

/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCREUR_Public/010314.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, March 14, 2001, Vol. 2, No. 51 Headlines * B E L G I U M * REAL SOFTWARE: In Standstill Deal With Banks REAL SOFTWARE: Posts Loss of 271 Million Euro in 2000 REAL SOFTWARE: To Sell U.S. Unit SABENA SA: Cuts Unprofitable Flights TER BEKE: Sees Losses in 2001 * B U L G A R I A * BALKAN AIRLINES: Flag Carrier Goes Bankrupt * N E T H E R L A N D S * WORLD ONLINE: Investors End Talks With World Online * P O L A N D * HUTA KATOWICE: Creditors Plans Block of Accounts STATE RAILWAYS: To Receive 700 Million Zloty From Banks TOWARZYSTWO FINANSOWO-LEASINGOWE: Court Declares Firm Bankrupt TU DAEWOO: PKF to Invest 105 Million Zloty * R U S S I A * MEDIA-MOST: Gusinsky Hearing to Begin March 15 * S W E D E N * ASSIDOMAEN AB: To Sell Operations for 10.410BB Swedish Koronas LM ERICSSON: Sees Up To 5 Billion Swedish Kronas Loss * U N I T E D K I N G D O M * ACTINIC PLC: Shares Plummet to 48% IMI PLC: To Cut 1,200 Jobs TCT INTERNATIONAL: Seeks 4.7 Million Pounds From Investors WEMBLEY NATIONAL: Seeks to Cut 400 Million Pound Debt Load ============= B E L G I U M ============= REAL SOFTWARE: In Standstill Deal With Banks -------------------------------------------- Real Software has reached a standstill agreement with its banks requiring the troubled IT services group to present a restructuring plan by June 30, according to Reuters on Monday. Under the agreement, debt payments will be temporarily suspended while the company seeks to renegotiate some terms. Real Software also said it had agreed to sell most of its U.S. operations to Swiss engineering giant ABB, and cover outstanding loans of about 225 million euros. Real Software's lenders are KBC Bancassurance, Fortis and a syndicate of five banks, including Dexia and two small Belgian banks. REAL SOFTWARE: Posts Loss of 271 Million Euro in 2000 ----------------------------------------------------- Real Software NV had swung to a net loss of 271.5 million euros in 2000 from a 6.3 million euro profit in 1999, according to Dow Jones on Monday, with 257.6 million euro net loss in the U.S. and a 13.9 million euro loss in Europe. With the heavy losses, the company came up with a restructuring plan. This includes the consolidation of its European, which will lead to a 7% increase in comparable revenue and earnings before interest and taxes. The restructuring committee, composed of managers and external advisors and headed by Chief Executive Theo Dilissen, will propose a strategic restructuring plan to the Board of Directors by the end of April. REAL SOFTWARE: To Sell U.S. Unit -------------------------------- Real Software had signed a letter of intent to sell a majority stake in its U.S. unit to ABB in a mainly cash deal, Reuters in its Monday edition said. The company's financial problems have been linked to its 1999 purchase of U.S.-based Tava Technologies, where it financed the deal with 75% debt funding. Real Software originally planned to pay off part of the Tava debt by issuing new shares, but a drop in its share price in 1999 made it unfeasible. The decline spurred the debt restructuring of 80 million euros in November 2000. SABENA SA: Cuts Unprofitable Flights ------------------------------------ Money-losing Sabena is dropping unprofitable flights to three European destinations as part of its cost-cutting plan, according to AP Online on Monday. Sabena would drop flights to Jersey in Britain's Channel Islands, Corsica, and Mallorca beginning March 25. It will, however, add one weekly flight to New York's John F. Kennedy airport and two flights to Montreal, Canada. Sabena came close to running out of funds last month before its shareholders, the Belgian government and Swissair parent SAirGroup, approved a 250 million euro ($232 million) cash infusion. TER BEKE: Sees Losses in 2001 ----------------------------- Prepared meals maker Ter Beke may report a loss in the first half of 2001, following the mad cow and foot-and-mouth diseases crises, according to Reuters in its March 9 report. Last year, Ter Beke reported a net profit of 112 million Belgian francs ($2.59 million) against a loss of 330 million Belgian francs ($7.64 million). The difference in the results was so drastic because the previous year included the restructuring costs that it had to incur following the 1999 dioxin-in-food crisis in Belgium. =============== B U L G A R I A =============== BALKAN AIRLINES: Flag Carrier Goes Bankrupt ------------------------------------------- After months of protests and legal action surrounding Balkan Airlines, a Sofia court on Monday declared the Bulgarian airline bankrupt, according to Agence France Presse. The main creditors, including insurance company Bulstrad, Sofia airport and the International Air Transport Association (IATA), launched legal action last month to have the airline declared bankrupt. The court is also fixing a creditors' meeting for April 3, AFP added. ===================== N E T H E R L A N D S ===================== WORLD ONLINE: Investors End Talks With World Online --------------------------------------------------- Private shareholders' lobby Vereniging van Effectenbezitters (VEB) said that talks have ended for last year's flotation of Internet Service Provider World Online, following a failed settlement with various parties, according to Reuters on Monday. VEB did not say which parties it had held talks with, but six parties were invited. These were World Online, bank ABN AMRO, investment bank Goldman Sachs and three World Online shareholders who sold existing stakes as part of the IPO. In November last year, VEB launched a draft summons, which claimed that World Online's shareholders were misled. A month later, World Online said shareholders demanded 220 million guilders ($92.6 million) in compensation for their losses. The company, however, said it was willing to pay 10 million guilders as a nuisance fee to be rid of the claim. According to a December 13, 2000 report of the TCR-EUR, World Online has paid no dividends and has reported losses in the past three years. =========== P O L A N D =========== HUTA KATOWICE: Creditors Plans Block of Accounts ------------------------------------------------ A consortium of Huta Katowice's (HK) creditors have agreed to postpone up to the end of March the deadline to receive 357 million zloty ($89.3 million) in debt repayments, according to Warsaw Business on Monday. The group includes Bank Przemyslowo-Handlowy SA, Powszechny Bank Kredytowy SA, Kredyt Bank SA, Bank Pekao SA, Bank Slaski SA and Bank Handlowy SA. HK labor unions protested against the bankruptcy last week, demanding the Treasury Ministry's protection of the steel mill. STATE RAILWAYS: To Receive 700 Million Zloty From Banks ------------------------------------------------------- Polish State Railways (PKP) will receive 700 million zloty ($175 million) short-term credit from a consortium of five banks, Warsaw Business Journal in its March 12 edition said. The cash will be used to meet PKP's financial obligations, such as overdue payments to the Social Security Administration (ZUS) and supplemental fares for regional services. According to a January 4 report, TCR-EUR said that the company has planned a reduction in its workforce by 30,000 in two years. PKP's debt as of September 30, 2000 reached 6.7 billion zlotys, while its year-end debt was estimated to reach 8.1 billion zlotys. TOWARZYSTWO FINANSOWO-LEASINGOWE: Court Declares Firm Bankrupt -------------------------------------------------------------- A Wroclaw court has declared leasing company Towarzystwo Finansowo-Leasingowe (TFL) bankrupt after it failed to repay its debts exceeding 200 million zloty ($50 million), according to Warsaw Business Journal on Monday. Its creditors include the Treasury Ministry, Bank Zachodni, Bank Gospodarki Zywnosciowej, Bank Rozwoju Eksportu, and some 1,700 others. TU DAEWOO: PKF to Invest 105 Million Zloty ------------------------------------------ Auto insurer TU Daewoo has a new strategic investor, Polskie Konsorcjum Finansowe (PKF), Warsaw Business Journal in its Monday edition said. PKF, which will invest 105 million zloty ($26.3 million) in TU Daewoo by the end of March, will also receive a 51% stake in the insurer. =========== R U S S I A =========== MEDIA-MOST: Gusinsky Hearing to Begin March 15 ---------------------------------------------- Spain's national judicial board on Monday ruled that hearings on the extradition of Media-Most head Vladimir Gusinsky would begin on March 15, according to Itar-Tass. Gusinsky, who was arrested last December by Spanish police, then early this year his villa in Andalusia, was charged with a large- scale fraud. =========== S W E D E N =========== ASSIDOMAEN AB: To Sell Operations for 10.410BB Swedish Koronas ----------------------------------------------------------------- AssiDomaen AB has inked a deal with Kappa Alpha Holdings to sell its Corrugated & Containerboard operations for 10.410 billion Swedish koronas, according to AFX Press yesterday. Of the selling price, 350 million Swedish koronas represent tax debts and 4.680 billion Swedish koronas for net interest-bearing liabilities. With the asset sale, AssiDomaen can focus on its industrial operations, which consists of the Froevi cartonboard mill, the sawmill operations, and Billerud AB. This will also help generate a strong and stable cash flow. LM ERICSSON: Sees Up To 5 Billion Swedish Kronas Loss ----------------------------------------------------- LM Ericsson AB expects to make a pretax loss of 4 to 5 billion Swedish kronas in the first quarter due to continued losses in phones and increased 3G investments, according to AFX Press yesterday. The current economic slow-down has increased the uncertainty about the growth rate in the entire information technology sector. Customers in the U.S. and in Western Europe are delaying their capital expenditures. As a result, Ericsson has an ongoing comprehensive restructuring program in Consumer Products and a freeze hiring in its largest division Mobile Systems. The phone company will also review further measures to reduce costs and improve capital efficiency, AFX added. =========================== U N I T E D K I N G D O M =========================== ACTINIC PLC: Shares Plummet to 48% ---------------------------------- Shares in software group Actinic Plc, a leading developer of e- commerce software for small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in the United Kingdom, European Union and the United States of America, dived 48% after it said turnover to the end of September will be significantly lower than current market expectations, according to The Times yesterday. The group's expectations scaled down after a disappointing start to the year for sales of its PortalBuilder software in the UK. As of September 1999, Actinic's long term debt was 907,000 pounds and total liabilities were 1.15 million pounds. IMI PLC: To Cut 1,200 Jobs -------------------------- Engineering and fluid power group IMI PLC is to axe 1,200 jobs as part of a wide-ranging overhaul of its American and European business, according to AFX Press yesterday. Around 600 to 700 of the job losses will be a move to streamline its business. Some 500 jobs will go as the manufacturing operations will be transferred to low-cost economies such as Mexico, Eastern Europe and China in two to three years. The group will take a charge of 40 million sterling in 2001 to cover the costs of the restructuring process. Chief executive Martin Lamb said that he would be restructuring the business for long-term growth, but declined to say which businesses will be disposed. The review, however, identified some poorly performing assets. TCT INTERNATIONAL: Seeks 4.7 Million Pounds From Investors ---------------------------------------------------------- Medical products company TCT International Plc is asking shareholders for 4.7 million pounds via a share placing and open offer, The Times in its Tuesday edition reported. The company, formerly Tricorder Technology plc, said that unless new funds would be raised, its ability to operate would be jeopardized. As of March 2000, the company has total liabilities of 1.09 million pounds. WEMBLEY NATIONAL: Seeks to Cut 400 Million Pound Debt Load ---------------------------------------------------------- Wembley National Stadium is negotiating ways to cut up to a third off its expected 400 million-pound debt load, the Times reported in its Tuesday edition. Project chairman Sir Rodney Walker revealed that the Football Association might also sell a piece of the development once it is completed. The move would effectively lift the equity component of the project for Wembley to easily secure finance. 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 USA, and Beard Group, Inc., Washington, DC USA. Kimberly MacAdam, Salve M. Mordeno and Cristina Pernites, Editors. Copyright 2001. All rights reserved. ISSN 1529-2754. This material is copyrighted and any commercial use, resale or publication in any form (including e-mail forwarding, electronic re-mailing and photocopying) is strictly prohibited without prior written permission of the publishers. Information contained herein is obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but is not guaranteed. The TCR Europe subscription rate is $575 per half-year, delivered via e-mail. Additional e-mail subscriptions for members of the same firm for the term of the initial subscription or balance thereof are $25 each. For subscription information, contact Christopher Beard at 301/951-6400. * * * End of Transmission * * *